Yutika's POV

"Bye, Papa. I am going," I said as I hugged my dad tightly.

He gently patted my back before breaking the hug. He looked at me with concern and said, "Beta, you still have time. Don't be stubborn. You can still go back to Birmingham."

I looked at him and gave him a small smile.

"Papa, I lived there for so long, and look what happened. I couldn't even be here with Mom during her last days. I already regret that so much." I paused for a moment, trying to hold back my emotions. "So this time, I want to stay here with you. I want to spend as much time with you as I can. I don't want to look back one day and regret not being here with you too."

My dad looked at me quietly, his eyes were filled with emotion. For a moment, neither of us said anything.

"Okay. If you have already made up your mind, then I won't say anything," he said with a small sigh. "Go and take Maa and Dadaji's blessings."

He looked toward the photos hanging on the wall, both were adorned with garlands. I followed his gaze and slowly walked toward them.

I stood in front of the photos and joined my hands. My eyes filled with tears, and for a moment, I wanted to let them fall. But I didn't want Dad to see me crying. So, I took a deep breath, controlled my emotions, and looked back at him with a small smile.

"Okay, Dad. I have to go, or I will be late on my first day of college."

"Okay, beta. Bye. And yes, should I call the driver? Or are you going to drive yourself?"

I turned around and looked at him.

"Uff, Dad,,,, I have my Dhanno. Why would I go in a four wheeler? I will go with my Dhanno."

Saying that, I quickly grabbed up the keys and rushed outside. I could hear Dad sighing and shaking his head behind me. I just smiled, got on my Dhanno, and drove away.

My Dhanno.

Mom and Dad had bought it for me on my eighteenth birthday. It was more than just a bike to me. It was like a little piece of home which was carrying so many memories of the three of us.

I had been here for only a week, but even in that short time, I had made so many memories with Mom and Dad. Memories that were still irreplaceable.

Before going back to Birmingham to finish my studies, I had spent that one week with them, never knowing those would become some of my last moments with Mom. I never imagined that when I said goodbye and left for Birmingham, I was unknowingly saying goodbye to her for the last time.

Dad had stopped me from coming back for her last rites. By the time I returned, it was already too late. I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye to Mom one last time, and that was something I knew I would regret forever.

Maybe that was why I had made my decision.

I am staying here.

I would finish my college here, find a job here, and build my life here. I wasn't going to leave Dad alone.

Not again.

I had already lost too much time with my parents. I didn't want to spend another moment away from the only family I had left.

I was lost in my thoughts when my eyes suddenly fell on the banyan tree ahead of me. It had caught fire, and the sight of it made my eyes widen in shock. I was so close to it that if I pulled the brakes of my bike, I would have fallen right under the burning tree.

I quickly shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. Without giving it a second thought, I gripped the handle tightly and sped up my bike, accelerating as fast as I could to get away from there. I lowered my head, as if that alone could stop the branch from falling on me.

Within seconds, I felt the branch fall, and I instinctively closed my eyes.

"Mom, I am coming to you," I whispered.

My breathing became heavy and my heartbeat was fast. I opened my eyes, I saw that I had already crossed the gate. The branch hadn't even touched me.

I had no idea how I had managed to dodge it. Maybe my calculations had failed this time, or perhaps I had simply been lucky.

As I entered, I noticed plenty of bikes and other two-wheelers parked there. I rode towards the parking area and parked my bike. As I removed my helmet, I felt a raindrop land on my hand. Now Slowly my heartbeat became normal.

I looked up subconsciously, and within moments, the rain started pouring.

My eyes went towards the banyan tree, suddenly a rain drop fell in

My eyes, I rubbed it and smiled. At least now, because of the rain, the fire would be put out.

Soon, I was completely soaked, but I didn't care. I never minded getting wet in the rain.

In fact, I loved the rain.

I walked towards the college's main door, and the moment I entered, I felt like every eye was on me. I slowly looked down at my clothes, wondering if they had become see-through because of the rain. Thankfully, the jacket was covering it.

I looked around, trying to find the notice board so I could check the class information. After a moment, I spotted it in one corner of the hallway.

I walked towards it, ignoring the whispers and gossip happening around me. I could feel people looking at me and talking among themselves, but I tried not to pay attention.

All I wanted was to find out where my class was and get there before I was late.

Suddenly, I felt someone walking towards me.

"H-hello."

I heard a voice and turned around. It was a boy, wearing a simple T-shirt and jeans. His hair was still wet, probably because of the rain.

I looked into his eyes for a moment before replying, "Hello."

I turned back towards the notice board, hoping I could find my classroom quickly. I didn't want to be late on my first day.

"You are also a fresher?" he asked.

This time, his voice didn't crack like it had the last time he spoke to me.

I nodded my head and continued looking at the notice board.

"Myself Kritarth. You are Yutika, right?"

Again, I didn't say anything. I simply nodded my head.

"You don't remember me?" he asked.

I looked at him and narrowed my eyes, trying hard to figure out where I had seen him before.

"Oye, tomato. Even after I told you my name, you still don't remember me?" He crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows. "It's me, Miss Tomato. Kritarth. Kritarth Bhuyan."

"What the... you sade hue aam..."

The moment I remembered who he was, my face lit up. Without thinking twice, I happily hugged him.

I couldn't believe it was actually him. After so long, seeing a familiar face felt surprisingly comforting.

I broke the hug and looked at him with a smile. But then my eyes fell on his clothes.

He was standing there with one hand on the college bag's strap, and now even his clothes had become a little wet because of my sudden hug.

"Sorry about this," I said, pointing towards his T-shirt.

He just shook his head.

"It's okay... It's better than being soaked in mud... You know..."

This time, I smiled, and I could feel my teeth showing too.

"Yaar, after so long!!!! How are you? And wait... why were you stuttering when you said hello?"

"I wasn't sure if it was really you or not," he replied. "I heard someone talking about Mr. Bora's daughter, so I came to you just to confirm."

Hearing that, I immediately twisted his ear.

"See? Learn something from them. How do they know me without actually knowing me? You spent years with me and still forgot my face, huh?"

"Aah, Tomato, Leave, leave... It hurts." he cried dramatically, trying to free his ear from my grip.

I finally let go of his ear, laughing as I listened to him scream, just like he used to when we were kids.

He rubbed his ear and said, "I was just busy with my books, and that's why I easily forget faces. It's been almost ten years. How am I supposed to recognize you that easily? And wait, even you took some time to recognize me. What about that?"

I just smiled awkwardly, trying to avoid the topic.

"Hehe... you tell me. Which branch did you take admission in?"

"Same as you."

When he said that, my eyes narrowed in confusion. Then he signaled with his eyes towards the notice board I had been checking.

I looked at it and finally noticed the big title written across the top in bold letters.

BBA.

"Wow. So, get ready, Mr. Mango. You are going to get beaten by me every day, just like in our childhood," I said in a teasing tone.

But this time, instead of arguing with me, he simply smiled and gently smacked the back of my head.

"Ouch..." I rubbed my head and glared at him.

He just laughed.

"By the way, why are people here like this? Are they possessed or something?" I whispered, moving a little closer to his ear. "Within seconds, they start looking at us, and the moment we look back, they just lower their heads."

He shook his head in disbelief and gave me a look that clearly said I was being ridiculous.

"You are really dumb. They are just looking at you."

"Me? Why me?" I asked, pointing at myself. "I mean, at first I thought they were looking at me because I was completely soaked. But why are they still staring now?" I paused for a second before my eyes widened.

"Wait, wait, wait... don't tell me they still behave like this here. You know, like talking to a boy is some kind of huge taboo or something."

He narrowed his eyes at me and sighed.

"You really never check the mirror or something?"

I stared at him in confusion, not understanding what he meant.

"What?" I asked. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Nothing. Don't think too much about it." He shook his head and looked away. "Let's just go to class before we get late."

Before I could ask him anything else, he reached out and held my hand. I glanced down at our hands for a moment, surprised by the sudden gesture, but he had already started walking.

I quickly followed him without saying anything.

This time, I didn't even bother looking around to see who was staring at us. I just kept my eyes on him and followed quietly.

In the class

When we entered the classroom, I noticed that there were not many students inside. Only three students were sitting there.

As soon as we walked in, all three of them looked at us. One of them quickly looked away and went back to using his phone, as if nothing had happened. One girl looked at me for a moment and gave me a polite, formal smile. I smiled back at her, a little awkwardly.

Without saying anything, we walked toward the last bench and sat down. Both of us knew that the first bench was definitely not meant for us.

I leaned back and started looking around the classroom.

The room had an old-school feel to it.

The benches were arranged in a stair-like pattern, with each row slightly higher than the one in front of it. It wasn't anything fancy, but something comfortable.

There were three big windows. One was between the two doors, while the other two were on the opposite side of the room. I looked around slowly.

Slowly, more students started coming into the classroom. The room began to feel a little livelier as everyone found their seats.

After a while, the same girl who had smiled at me earlier came over and sat beside Kritarth.

She looked at me and extended her hand with a friendly smile.

"Hello, myself Pooja. And you?"

I smiled and shook her hand. "Myself Yutika."

Then she looked at Kritarth.

"And you?"

"Kritarth," he said with a smile.

"Arey, Tomato, I forgot to tell you one thing," Kritarth suddenly said. "Suraj bhaiya is also in the same college."

The moment I heard his name, my eyes narrowed.

"I just hope he stays away from my sight," I said, turning my gaze away from both of them.

Pooja looked at me in surprise.

"Wait, what did you just say? Suraj? You mean Suraj Bhuyan? And you called him bhaiya? Is he your brother?"

Kritarth nodded.

"Oh God..." Her eyes immediately lit up. "Kritarth, will you help me talk with him? I really admire him. I just want to talk to him at least once."

I turned my head toward her, unable to believe what I was hearing.

"Seriously? Admire? That junglee kutta?" I muttered under my breath. "I think you should go and get your brain checked somewhere."

Pooja looked at me with a confused expression, while Kritarth tried hard not to laugh.

"You still don't like him?" he asked. "But he has changed now. And you know what? Even if he sees you right now, he is going to be completely crazy about you. You know, the 'mad for you' type..."

"He doesn't need to be mad," I replied, rolling my eyes. "Because he already is."

I turned my face away, refusing to say anything more.

Before Kritarth could reply, the professor entered the classroom. Everyone quickly settled down, and the room became quiet.

I looked toward the front and noticed a girl sitting just in front of my seat.

A few moments later, she suddenly got up and left the classroom.

What surprised me was that even the professor didn't say anything to her. He simply kept looking at her until she disappeared from his sight.

I didn't think much about it at the time.

After two lectures were over, we got some free time because the professor who was supposed to take the third lecture couldn't come.

Me, Kritarth, and Pooja decided to wander around the college. I wanted to see more of the place, so we went up to the first floor.

As we walked through the corridor, Kritarth suddenly looked at Pooja.

"Pooja, you wanted to talk to bhai, right?"

Without wasting even a second, she nodded her head.

She nodded so hard that, for a moment, I honestly thought her head was going to fall off.

"So, here is his class." Kritarth stopped in front of a classroom door and pointed inside.

My eyes widened the moment I realized whose class it was.

"Oh no. Oye, Mango, I have to go."

Before either of them could ask me anything, I quickly turned around. But I wasn't looking where I was going, and I bumped straight into someone.

"Sorry, sorry," I said quickly.

I looked up and found a girl standing in front of me. She crossed her arms and tilted her head, looking at me with a curious expression.

"Nisha," Kritarth said.

The moment she heard his voice, her eyes moved toward him.

"Oh, hey, sweetheart. How are you?" she said with a smile.

Then she walked toward him and hugged him.

"Finally became our junior..." she added with a smirk on her face.

I stood there quietly for a moment. Then I turned around and started to walk away. But just as I was leaving, the girl who had been talking to Kritarth suddenly held my hand.