Imperfect Two

Chapter 15

She dropped her bag into the seat next to Ranvijay's and sat in the chair opposite him in the library hall. It was unsurprisingly empty today. He looked up at her and gave her a smile. Great! Just when she needed him to frown, he goes around distributing gorgeous smiles as though they're free. Huh. They are free, aren't they? She smiled at that thought in her head and he took it to mean it was meant for him. Good enough.

She asked, "So we're doing the fifth chapter today? Only three more to go!" She tried to infuse some enthusiasm into her tone.

He set the pen down and looked at her curiously to ask, "Are you, of all people, getting excited about Maths? The world is not itself today, clearly."

She giggled reluctantly. She realized it then, sitting here opposite him instead of next to him. It was not cool. She preferred how things were before. Just before she realized that she...

No. Life was way easier before she went ahead and embraced feelings she didn't really want to acknowledge. So she decided to keep them at bay for as long as she could.

She looked into his eyes and said with a smile, "Let's get crackin' Professor of Prime Numbers!"

Eyes alight with amusement, he nodded to say, "That sounds much better."

Over the course of the next two hours, things went back to normal. Mahua felt confident that whatever she felt yesterday was just for yesterday. This was Ranvijay after all. The annoying guy in class who didn't know how to smile. The guy who was frustratingly good at everything and was nothing like her in any way. Yes. This was Ranvijay. She smiled internally, relief coursing through her.

Eventually, Ranvijay shut the book and said, "Okay. You're good to go with this chapter as well." Then with a mischievous smile, he asked, "Do I detect liking for the subject on your part?" He placed his fingertips on the side of his forehead and said, "I'm sensing it. Yes...definitely. You're falling for Maths. Lucky fellow."

The relief that she had worked so hard to achieve, walked confidently toward the window and jumped right out. She reached for the book and it slid from the desk before coming near her, landing on the floor with a resounding thud. She got off her chair hurriedly to pick it up and ended up crashing her head into Ranvijay's as he had bent to pick up the book at the same time. She clutched her head and sat down on the floor in a heap next to the open book.

"Hey! Are you alright?"

She looked between her palms to see him lower himself to the floor on the other side of the book.

She mumbled, "No. I crashed into your big head. How will I be alright?"

He rubbed his head and replied, "You're not exactly made of cotton either."

She let out a muffled laugh and that made him smile. He stopped rubbing his head and said, "You know what has to be done though, right?"

She dropped her hands and picked up the book and set it on her lap. She asked, "What do you mean?" She made her way to get up when he held onto her arms and stopped her.

"You know the drill. We have to bump our heads together again. Or else we'll end up fighting. I think we do enough of that as it is, don't you think?"

She widened her eyes in incredulity and shot back, "That's a superstition. You, of all people believe in superstitions?"

He shrugged and replied airily, "Eh we all have our quirks. Come on now!"

She pulled away and said, "Dude and I knock heads all the time. We're fine. Trust me."

He looked at her carefully and said, "Well, you and Dude are not the same as you and I."

Having said that, he gently held the back of her neck and pulled her head close to his. Their foreheads met and she closed her eyes, trying not the pay attention to the alarm bells ringing in her head. She thought he would pull back but he didn't. He shut his eyes as well.

The library was always so quiet. Today was no different. The moments were slower as well. The only thing that clashed violently with the atmosphere was her heart. Fast and thudding away. She could still feel his warm hand at the back of her neck over her long hair. She raised a hand slowly to push him away but stopped it half way, half-heartedly. She didn't really want this moment to end, did she? She lowered her hand and meant for it to land on her lap. Instead, it fell on his knee.

He opened his eyes and looked at the hand. Slowly, he pulled away from her and watched her, her eyes closed, the colour of her face slightly pink. She opened her eyes suddenly and saw him studying her intently. She withdrew her hand from his knee, picked up the book from her lap and handed it to him. Without thinking further, she just got up, picked up her bag, mumbled shakily, "Thanks" and strode out of the library.

He ran his fingers over the rhinestones hot-glued over his book and remained where he was.

Author's Note: I know! I know! I totally know! Well, to be honest, I have no idea when the next update will be. So I guess it's a good thing, I published 4 chapters in 24 hours, right? Right! Okay, seeya guys soon. No idea where but hopefully soon. Until then, - S