A Million Little Reasons
Foreword and Introduction
DISCLAIMER: This story and its characters are purely fictional and do not resemble real life. They are just a part the author's creative mind and do not represent her intentions or morals.
The pictures added at any point of the story do not belong to me (except for my profile) and are sourced from the internet.
Hello, everyone! I have been a reader on this platform since when I was a preteen and with 2026 being my last year as a teenager, I thought—why not publish a story here? And here I am!
A quick introduction of myself first—I am Raaga, a university student currently in my fourth semester, and as I just said, I am nineteen. I am an introvert IRL through and through, but I am open to making friends.
Second point—I have been cooking this story up from when I was seventeen-ish, and I already have some drafts for the early chapters (on my laptop). So right now it is more about editing and proofreading them (I tend to be a tad bit harsh on myself, lol) before publishing. Alongside that, I also have tests, endsems, and projects this month. I know it is probably a bad time to start a story 😅 let's just say I love to torture myself.
Next, I am a nervous kid, so I request you to be kind when giving criticism. I would also like to add to this point that English is not my first language, and I believe life is just a process of learning until the very end, so I'm looking forward to learning from you too! (Trust me, I am an enthusiastic learner.)
I would also like to mention that I have a busy schedule, with internships coming up, I might not update regularly—but I willtry my best (if you know a uni student, you know they don't know sleep). So subscribe to the story to be notified of updates (see what I did there? 😌).
With all of these said, I think can safely begin with introducing the characters 🙏
Name: Dev Chaturvedi
Age: 17
Birthday: October 6th
"I used to believe in forever. Now I just believe in the moment,
and in never catching feelings again."
Name: Shanaya Tripathi
Age: 17
Birthday: November 1st
"Forever scares me.
Maybe that's why I walked away before it could break me."
Name: Abhinav Royal
Age: 17
Birthday: December 17th
"Every colour on my canvas is her,
and I live in grey shades."
Name: Sameera Chauhan
Age: 18
Birthday: March 4th
"I don't chase. If something is meant for me,
it will find its way—just like peace always does."
Name: Anika Shetty
Age: 17
Birthday: June 14th
"I never felt like I was meant for the spotlight.
Perhaps I am meant to remind people what warmth feels like."
Name: Simran Paul
Age: 17
Birthday: July 26th
"I don’t always know what I’m feeling,
but whatever it is—I feel it completely."
Name: Ekansh Ranawat
Age: 18
Birthday: February 27th
"I don't need people or relationships,
they only complicate life."
Name: Ishaan Mishra
Age: 18
Birthday: March 9th
"I didn't believe in coincidences until I saw her,
and suddenly the world made sense—right before it fell apart."
Raaga
So, that's the introduction to our characters, and this season revolves around these eight people.
Raaga
I'm excited to meet you again in the coming chapters. Stay tuned!
PS: I would also like to add that all of this was written on a whim at 3:00 AM IST with pure adrenaline and zero carefulness.
New seating arrangement
Astra Junior College, 6:30 AM
The corridors were empty, but the occasional rustling of pages and the low scratching of pens against paper from the rooms made it clear that people were inside.
He ran towards the end of the corridor and skidded to a halt in front of the last classroom, Section 2C. He heard the muffled sounds of roll call being taken, and walked in.
"Ishaan! Do you think you're out on a stroll?" The junior lecturer yelled, even before looking up from the attendance register, "This is the second time this week alone. If I see you coming late again, I'll take you to the Vice Principal"
Ishaan Mishra
Ishaan barely glanced his way as he navigated through the familiar path to his desk, avoiding stepping on the bags laid strewn on the floor.
Ishaan Mishra
His eyes narrowed as he glanced at the not very familiar figure beside his assigned seat and looked around, realising that the seating arrangements had changed.
Ishaan Mishra
"For God's sake" he muttered under his breath, irritated, plopping down on his seat. He didn't want a desk mate.
However, he peeked at what book his desk mate was reading. Chemistry. He didn't like Chemistry. That was two reasons already why he didn't like the person sitting beside him.
"I don't want to see any other subjects except for Chemistry on any desk in these two hours!" the Junior lecturer raised his voice, glancing at Ishaan.
Ishaan Mishra
Begrudgingly, Ishaan opened his own Chemistry study material and laid it on the desk.
The next two hours passed by very slowly and painstakingly for Ishaan as he skimmed through the book half-heartedly, occasionally looking out the window, and staring at the white board as though it would somehow make the time pass faster.
As soon as the electric bell rang, signalling the end of the morning self study, the once silent classroom erupted into chatter and chaos. Ishaan, too, put his books away, and chatted with fellow students about how the new seating arrangement was abrupt.
Ishaan Mishra
When he finally stood up to leave for breakfast, he saw his desk mate left her books unattended and was nowhere to be found.
Ishaan Mishra
Curiosity piqued in, and he glanced at the index page of the book on the top.
Ishaan Mishra
"Shanaya Tripathi," he read, feeling the name on his tongue, and felt a shiver pass through him. He slammed the book shut and hurried out of the classroom.
Sameera Chauhan
"So, *the* Ishaan Mishra is your desk mate!" Sameera concluded, clearly pleased with herself.
Breakfast Chaos
The corridor buzzed with girls rushing to breakfast. Room 113, however, remained suspiciously quiet.
Sameera, Simran, and Anika sat on Simran's bed in identical postures—arms folded and legs crossed, as they stared at Shanaya.
Shanaya Tripathi
Shanaya sat on her own bed, hands neatly folded in her lap, studying an invisible spot on the floor.
Sameera Chauhan
"So, *the* Ishaan Mishra is your new desk mate!" Sameera concluded, clearly pleased with herself.
The girls had been discussing who their new desk mates were, and poor Shanaya got caught.
Simran and Anika burst into laughter as Shanaya's face contorted at the mention of Ishaan Mishra.
Shanaya Tripathi
"AND he reeks of perfume! My head throbbed for two. Whole. Hours!" She slammed her right hand on the mattress beside her, "It felt like he didn't shower for three days!" She scrunched her nose.
The laughter only increased at her remark.
Anika Shetty
"Perhaps he just likes his perfume to bits" Anika managed to say, still laughing.
Shanaya Tripathi
Shanaya glared, "Why are you all laughing over my misery?" which sent the girls into another fit of laughter.
Sameera Chauhan
Sameera glanced at her wristwatch, and looked at her roommates, "Now now, this Ishaan Mishra or that Mukesh Ambani won't feed us, we have to do it ourselves" she stood up, "Are you guys coming yet?"
With that, they headed to the hostel mess.
Ishaan Mishra
"And that one with the short hair is my new desk mate I was talking about," Ishaan told his roommate, Dev Chaturvedi, in a low voice, "Her name is Shanaya Tripathi" he pointed at Shanaya, who walked past the classroom they were in.
Dev Chaturvedi
Dev, who was looking out the window, turned to look at the mention of her name.
Dev Chaturvedi
He spoke, "Relax. I don't think she's after you, Ishaan" he looked out the window again, chin propped up by a hand, "Also, the bell rang. Go back to your class. Or else the junior lecturer might actually take you to the Vice Principal"
Ishaan Mishra
Ishaan huffed, "Tell me about it." He left to his own classroom.
Raaga
So... a lot happened over the past two months, and I had to put this story on hold for a while. It really was not the right time to start a story afterall 🫠
Raaga
I'm releasing these two chapters as of the moment, but I'll try my best to update regularly from now on 😅🙏
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