chapter 3

That Night...

The village slowly became quiet.

The crickets started their night concert.

The moon shone brightly.

And in two different houses...

Two completely different people were thinking about the same ridiculous incident.

At Maya's House...

Maya lay on her bed with her blanket wrapped around her like a burrito.

Tomorrow was her first day of college.

Grandma peeked inside.

Grandma: "Sleep early, dear. You don't want to be late on your first day."

Maya saluted dramatically.

Maya: "Yes, Captain Grandma!"

Grandma smiled and switched off the light.

Within minutes...

Maya was fast asleep.

And then..

Dream Mode Activated.

Inside her dream...

Maya was sitting happily in the college canteen.

In front of her was the most beautiful plate of food she had ever seen.

Hot masala dosa.

Crispy vada.

Sambar.

Three types of chutney.

A big glass of fresh juice.

A chocolate cake.

Maya's eyes sparkled.

Maya: "Finally... happiness."

She folded her hands dramatically.

"Dear Food Gods... thank you."

Just as she picked up a piece of dosa...

A giant hand appeared.

Snatch!

The dosa disappeared.

Maya slowly turned.

"No..."

Standing beside her...

Was Akshay.

He calmly dipped her dosa into her sambar.

Maya gasped.

Maya: "YOU!"

Akshay looked completely innocent.

Akshay: "I found it first."

Maya: "IT WAS IN MY PLATE!"

He shrugged.

Akshay: "Details."

He took another bite.

Maya screamed.

"My dosaaa!"

She quickly grabbed her vada.

Another giant hand.

Snatch!

Akshay: "Thank you."

Maya stood up.

"No more!"

She hugged the entire plate protectively.

Akshay looked at the juice.

Maya noticed.

She immediately covered it.

"You touch this juice..."

"I'll file a police complaint!"

Akshay casually reached for the cake instead.

Maya: "NOT THE CAKE!"

The entire canteen started chanting,

"Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Even the dosa flipped itself dramatically in slow motion.

Maya jumped across the table.

Akshay dodged.

She chased him around the canteen carrying a spoon like it was a sword.

Maya: "Return my food, Coconut Thief!"

Akshay laughed while running.

"Catch me first!"

Suddenly...

He stole the entire plate.

Maya let out the loudest scream ever.

"My fooooooood!"

Real World...

Maya suddenly sat upright on her bed.

Maya: "MY DOSA!"

Grandma rushed into the room.

Grandma: "What happened?!"

Maya looked around.

No canteen.

No Akshay.

No stolen dosa.

Just her room.

She slowly touched her forehead.

"...It was a dream."

Grandma looked confused.

Grandma: "Who stole your dosa?"

Maya mumbled with complete seriousness.

"...The Coconut Thief."

Grandma blinked twice.

"...Go back to sleep."

She quietly walked away.

Outside the room...

Grandma laughed to herself.

"I don't even know who this Coconut Thief is..."

_____

At Akshay's House...

Akshay finished arranging a few files on his table before getting ready to sleep.

The house was silent.

It had been that way ever since he lost his parents.

He switched off the light and lay down on his bed.

For some reason...

His mind wandered back to the tiny girl from the coconut stall.

He remembered her standing with both hands on her waist...

Trying her hardest to look threatening.

Instead...

She had looked like an angry kitten.

A smile escaped his lips.

"So much anger..."

"...over one shampoo and one coconut."

He shook his head.

"I've never seen someone dislike me this quickly."

He remembered her warning.

"If we meet tomorrow... don't touch anything I'm buying."

He chuckled softly.

"She's funny..."

Within a few minutes...

His eyes slowly closed.

Meanwhile...

Across the village...

Maya turned in her sleep and mumbled,

"Don't touch my idli..."

At that exact moment...

Akshay suddenly sneezed in his sleep.

He frowned without opening his eyes.

"Why do I feel like someone is blaming me... even now?"

The universe remained silent.

Because somewhere...

Maya had already promoted him.

From...

"Shampoo Thief."

To...

"Official Food Thief of the Village."

And tomorrow...

Their first day of college...

Was about to begin.

The real chaos hadn't even started yet.

__________________

The Next Day...

The sun shone brightly.

It was the Freshers' Day at the college.

The campus, which was usually peaceful, was now buzzing with excitement.

Everywhere...

New students walked around nervously with their admission files.

Some were excited.

Some were scared.

Some were pretending to be confident.

And the seniors...

Well...

They had gathered in groups under every tree, corridor, and staircase.

Officially...

They were there to "welcome the freshers."

Unofficially...

Most of the boys had come to see the new girls.

One senior whispered,

"I heard this year's batch has many beautiful girls."

Another adjusted his hair.

"Let's verify that information."

Nearby, another senior sighed dramatically.

"Freshers' Day... the only day attendance is 100%."

Everyone laughed.

Meanwhile...

Maya entered the college wearing a simple light blue salwar with her wavy hair left open.

She looked around curiously.

"So many people..."

Students were already introducing themselves.

Within minutes...

Groups had formed.

Some were laughing together.

Some were exchanging phone numbers.

Some had already become best friends.

Maya quietly watched them.

She wasn't the type to walk up to strangers and start conversations.

She would only speak if someone spoke to her first...

And even then...

Only if she felt comfortable.

"What if they don't like me?"

"What if I disturb them?"

"It's okay... I'll make friends slowly."

That was how Maya had always been.

An introvert.

Comfortable in silence.

As she looked around..

Her eyes stopped on one girl standing alone near the classroom door.

The girl clutched her bag tightly.

She looked even more nervous than Maya.

A few students tried speaking to her.

Girl: "H-Hi... W-What's y-your n-name?"

She struggled to complete even a single sentence.

The others smiled awkwardly before walking away.

The girl lowered her head.

She looked like she wanted the ground to open and swallow her.

Maya quietly observed everything.

"She's... even more introverted than me."

For some reason...

She found the girl's innocence adorable.

Without thinking much...

Maya walked towards her.

The shy girl immediately became nervous.

Maya gave her a warm smile.

Maya: "Hi..."

The girl looked up slowly.

Maya: "I'm Maya."

The girl hesitated for a few seconds before answering softly.

Girl: "S...S-Saharshini."

Maya smiled.

"That's a beautiful name."

Saharshini blinked in surprise.

No one had said that to her today.

Maya pointed towards an empty bench.

"Shall we sit together?"

Saharshini nodded immediately.

The two of them sat side by side.

For a few minutes...

Neither of them spoke.

The silence wasn't awkward.

It was comfortable.

Finally...

Maya laughed softly.

Maya: "I think we're both bad at starting conversations."

Saharshini covered her mouth and giggled.

"I...I think so too."

That one small laugh broke the ice.

Slowly...

The conversation became easier.

They spoke about their hometowns...

Their favorite foods...

Their school days...

And before they even realized it...

They had become friends.

From the second floor corridor...

A group of senior boys noticed them.

One of them nudged his friend.

"Look there..."

Another senior looked down.

His eyes widened slightly.

"The girl in the blue dress..."

"And the girl beside her..."

"They're both really pretty."

Another smirked.

"And they look so innocent."

One senior chuckled.

"Freshers..."

"They're going to be easy to tease."

The group laughed among themselves.

None of them noticed...

That fate had already written something else for them.

Because among all the seniors in that college...

There was one person..

Who hated seeing juniors being troubled.

And very soon...

The paths of Maya... Akshay... and the seniors...

Were about to cross once again.

___________________

The first-year classroom was packed.

Some students looked excited.

Some looked nervous.

Some were already wondering if attendance was compulsory for life.

Suddenly...

Bang!

The classroom door opened.

A gang of seniors walked in like they owned the college.

One of them clapped loudly.

Senior: "Good morning, freshers!"

No one answered.

Senior: "So much respect... I like it."

Another senior laughed.

Senior: "Today is Freshers' Day."

"So..."

"We're playing Dare."

A collective gulp echoed through the classroom.

The senior scanned the room.

His finger stopped at Saharshini.

Senior: "You... come."

Poor Saharshini nearly forgot how to breathe.

She slowly stood up.

Senior: "Simple dare."

"Come here and tell me..."

"I love you."

Saharshini's eyes became as big as saucers.

Saharshini: "N-No..."

"I... I can't..."

The senior pretended to think.

Senior: "Fine."

"New dare."

"Go outside."

"The first man you see..."

"Tell him 'I love you.'"

Saharshini shook her head so fast it looked like her neck would fall off.

Saharshini: "I don't want to..."

The seniors started teasing.

"Come on!"

"It's just a game!"

"Don't be scared!"

Saharshini looked like she was about to cry.

She immediately looked at Maya.

Maya stood up.

Maya: "She said no."

"That should be enough."

The senior grinned.

"Oh..."

"Bodyguard?".

The whole class laughed.

Senior: "Okay then."

"You also go."

"You both say it."

"Friendship package offer."

Maya mentally sighed.

"Why do I always get bonus problems?"

The two girls slowly walked out.

Outside...

Both stood in the corridor.

Maya whispered,

"We'll just say it and run."

Saharshini nodded like a frightened rabbit.

Just then...

Someone came around the corner.

Saharshini accidentally bumped into him.

She slipped.

Before she fell...

A hand caught her.

She was too scared to even look at his face.

She shut her eyes.

Blurted out at machine-gun speed-

Saharshini: "I-love-you-bye!"

And disappeared.

The man blinked.

"...What?"

It was Karthik.

An undercover police officer working with Akshay on a secret drug investigation inside the college.

He scratched his head.

"Did..."

"...did I accidentally get proposed to?"

Then he remembered the terrified expression on her face.

"Hmm..."

"That wasn't a confession."

"That was an escape mission."

Meanwhile...

Maya was searching for her victim.

She turned a corner.

THUD!

She walked straight into someone's chest.

She bounced back like a rubber ball.

Before she could fall...

Two hands caught her.

She looked up.

Higher...

Higher...

Even higher...

Then finally...

Akshay.

Maya's eyes narrowed.

"Oh no."

"The Food Thief!"

She remembered the dare.

Without even taking a breath-

Maya: "You Food Thief..."

"I love you!"

And...

Zoom!

She ran away so fast...

Even the wind got confused.

Akshay stood there.

Completely frozen.

Brain loading...

1%...

5%...

Error 404: Understanding Not Found.

A slow breeze passed.

Even it looked confused.

A few steps away...

Karthik had watched everything.

He looked at Akshay.

Looked at the direction Maya ran.

Then...

Started laughing uncontrollably.

Karthik: "Congratulations."

Akshay frowned.

"For what?"

Karthik: "First you said she called you shampoo thief."

"Then coconut thief."

"Now love confession."

"Your relationship is progressing very fast."

Akshay gave him a deadpan look.

"But now She called me..."

"...Food Thief."

I don't steal or take her food......

Karthik laughed even harder.

"That's even more romantic."

Akshay sighed.

"...That wasn't a proposal."

Karthik nodded.

"The girl who bumped into me also looked terrified."

Both became serious.

Akshay looked toward the first-year block.

"...Ragging."

Karthik nodded once.

"Let's go."

The moment they entered the classroom...

Both stopped.

One boy was in the dog position.

Another was barking.

A girl was forced to sing while everyone clapped off-beat.

One poor fellow was dancing like a broken robot.

Another was standing on a bench reciting multiplication tables.

Akshay slowly rubbed his forehead.

Karthik muttered,

"I came to investigate drugs..."

"...not a comedy show."

One senior saw them.

His smile slowly disappeared.

Akshay folded his arms.

His voice was calm.

Too calm.

Akshay: "Entertainment over?"

Silence.

Akshay: "All seniors..."

"HOD's office."

One senior tried to smile.

"Sir... we're just having fun."

Akshay looked around at the frightened freshers.

Then back at the seniors.

His voice was calm.

Too calm.

Akshay: "Does that look like fun to you?"

No one answered.

Karthik spoke quietly.

"All the seniors..."

"...come with us."

No one dared argue.

Within seconds...

The seniors silently followed them toward the HOD's office.

Inside the classroom...

The freshers let out a collective sigh of relief.

Maya whispered to herself,

"I think the Food Thief is scarier than the seniors."

I should just stay away from him.....but is he a professor........

What ever.....I will just stay away.....

_______________

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