The four of them sat in their corner again, trying to maintain their "cool squad" confidence.
Anabiya muttered in frustration,
"Why did the plan fail again? Why do all our plans keep failing?"
Zaki leaned in and said,
"I have another idea... What if tomorrow morning, we—"
The air in the classroom was thick with tension — and excitement.
Anabiya stood on her toes, carefully balancing a cup of water on top of the slightly open classroom door.
"Operation Splashfall is now live," she whispered.
Zaki gave a thumbs up. "He'll walk in, door opens, water falls — classic."
Urhaan checked the hallway nervously. "You sure Mahir's next?"
Mishal peeked around the corner. "He just went to the principal's office. He should be here any minute."
Everyone scattered to their posts.
Anabiya crouched behind the teacher's desk, Mishal leaned casually near the noticeboard, Urhaan fiddled with his sleeves like nothing was happening, and Zaki adjusted his hoodie — all part of the disguise.
The footsteps came.
Everyone held their breath.
The door creaked open.
SPLASH!
Cold water came raining down... soaking someone head to toe.
But it wasn't Mahir.
It was...
Arshi.
The cup clattered to the floor as Arshi gasped in complete horror. Water dripped from her perfectly straightened hair and expensive sweater. Her makeup smudged slightly, but what remained was pure rage.
Anabiya's eyes widened. "Oh no."
Arshi stood frozen, fists clenched, staring at everyone.
"You did this on purpose, didn't you?" she snapped, glaring straight at Anabiya.
Before Anabiya could answer, Arshi turned to march out the door. "I'm going to tell Miss Reshail—"
But then—
Urhaan stepped in front of her.
"Arshi, wait."
Arshi stopped.
Her voice wavered, suddenly much softer. "Urhaan... you saw that, right? She humiliated me."
Urhaan looked at her, calm and collected. "It was a mistake. No one knew it would be you."
"But she—"
"Arshi," he said gently but firmly, "please don't make a scene. Just go change. I'll talk to Miss Reshail if needed."
Arshi stared at him, her lips parting slightly — not in anger anymore, but awe.
For a moment, her heartbeat drowned out everything else.
She blinked... then nodded stiffly and turned away.
As soon as she left, Mishal whispered, "Well... that was close."
Zaki let out a laugh. "She looked like a wet squirrel."
Anabiya buried her face in her hands. "This was supposed to be Mahir's punishment, not a full-blown drama."
Urhaan chuckled. "On the bright side, you might've just made Arshi fall for me a little harder."
Mishal gagged. "Gross."
Zaki groaned. "Forget water — next time, I'm going with glue."
"No! Let's make a brand-new plan," Mishal interrupted, her voice firm. The next day the classroom buzzed with mischief. Break time had just started, and Anabiya was pacing like a general before battle.
"Okay, team," she said, eyes gleaming. "Today's the day Mahir learns not to mess with me."
Mishal leaned on the desk, curious. "What exactly are we doing?"
Anabiya grinned.
The four friends stood in the classroom, ready to give their plan a final touch — determined that this time, it had to work.
In the middle of break time, Anabiya stood at one side of the classroom door, holding a rope in her hand. On the other side stood Mishal, gripping the other end. The two girls looked like they were plotting something mischievous — and they were.
A few students stood nearby, openly staring, whispering.
Urhaan, clearly annoyed by the attention, stepped between the girls and the spectators, facing the rest of the students. "What is this, a dance show?" he barked. "Mind your own business!"
Urhaan's voice carried authority — enough that the crowd instantly dispersed and returned to their own tasks.
Meanwhile, Zaki was stationed by the window, eyes glued to the school gate. "Still not here..." he murmured, impatiently waiting.
Then suddenly — ding! The break-ending bell rang.
Zaki gasped. "He's coming!" he shouted, and bolted to his seat.
The classroom door creaked open.
Without missing a beat, Anabiya and Mishal yanked the rope hard — and the person walking in tripped and fell straight onto the floor.
Anabiya immediately stood up, triumphant. "Checkpoint! Told you not to mess with—"
Her words stopped dead in her mouth.
The man lying on the ground... wasn't Mahir.
It was Sir Ali.
Anabiya's eyes widened in horror.
Sir Ali slowly got up, brushing off his clothes, glaring straight at her.
"You," he said sharply. "To the staff room. Now."
He stormed out without another word.
Anabiya turned to leave — and came face to face with Mahir, standing right there, lips curved in the tiniest smirk.
His face was spotless... but Anabiya felt like he was laughing at her without saying a word.
Flustered, she ran her fingers through her hair, grabbed her bag, and followed Sir Ali to the staff room.
⸻
STAFF ROOM
As soon as she entered, Anabiya blurted, "Sir! I'm really sorry! I didn't know it was you. I thought—"
Sir Ali cut her off, his expression tired more than angry.
"Anabiya," he said firmly, "how long are we supposed to tolerate this behavior? What is happening to you? You're becoming more disrespectful every day."
He sighed. "Your father... he was my childhood friend. So polite. So well-mannered. And then there's you — no manners, no discipline, no improvement."
Anabiya lowered her head, silent.
Sir Ali shook his head. "I don't even know what punishment to give you anymore — because nothing seems to work."
An awkward silence hung in the air.
Finally, without waiting for dismissal, Anabiya turned and walked out slowly.