A loud burst of clapping echoed from the inside of the house, it was the boy's birthday night.
A candle shaped like the number fifteen(15) flickered in the center of the cake. As he blew it out, another round of claps erupted this time accompanied by the cheerful chorus of a birthday song.
In next scene we see the atmosphere has completely changed the cake was passed around, and the room hummed with small talk and laughter. Adults clustered near the dining table trading stories and eating cake while the younger siblings played their own games in the living room. It was a lively atmosphere.
But three figures had quietly slipped away.
Up on the terrace, the real party was underway: plates of chocolate cake, zero adult supervision, and three cousins who treated rules like vague suggestions.
Ishu , seventeen(17), self-proclaimed GOD and permanent resident of his own fantasy realm, had positioned himself dramatically at the edge. To teachers, he was Shrish. To the internet, to his cousins, to anyone who's seen him in action—he was GODSHRISH, no explanation needed, and his personality screamed "I'm the chosen one," though academically… he was more like "I chose not to study." "He was a master of none, but an exceptional learner—perhaps the greatest of them all, though he hadn't yet realized it himself."
"Cake is the food of gods," he declared, taking a bite like it was sacramental. "I accept this tribute."
Krishna, sixteen(16), aka Sarthak Pro to his school and gaming circle, rolled his eyes and stretched his long limbs like he was folding a deck chair. The tallest one in the family, he looked like mosquitoes donated him blood rather than taking it. A living skeleton, yes—but also a brainy juggernaut. Topper of the class, local Google expert, and the guy who somehow made lie feel like truth, A PROFESSIONAL LIAR.
"Ishu bhaiya(to show respect to elders brothers in INDIA by adding bhaiya after the name means BIG BRO), you say stuff like that and wonder why no one takes you seriously," he muttered, biting into his cake with tactical precision.
Debu, the birthday boy now officially fifteen(15), was perched between the two like a sponge soaking up the chaos. At school he was Sriansh, online he was EliteHaddock—don't ask, even he don't know. He saw Ishu as his guru, sensei, teacher, he highly respected him and looked up to him. He was like a smaller version of Ishu, but way better in studies, Debu was a certified Gooner and lowkey unbeatable in drawing, art and craft . He had few skills which were praise worthy( BTW GODSHRISH never gooned....). Ishu and Debu had a relationship of a teacher and a student. There were things in which Ishu excelled and in some Debu, in the end they were incomplete without each other.
"Sensei," he said reverently, licking frosting off his thumb, "was that a divine prophecy or just chocolate-induced nonsense?"
Ishu held up his fork like a magic staff. "Both."
Krishna nearly dropped his plate laughing.
They all laughed so hard that they were in tears.
They didn't know it yet, but this night on the rooftop—with jokes louder than the fireworks—was about to be their last normal one.
It started with a bell.
Soft at first. Faint. Like the echo of wind on hollow metal.
Ishu's fork froze mid-air. "You guys hear that?"
Krishna didn't look up. "Is this another one of your divine prophecies, GODSHRISH?"
Debu snorted, licking frosting off his thumb. "What is it this time? Portal to Valhalla? Or the sound of your grades falling?"
But the ringing grew louder. Sharper. Painful.
Ishu stood. "I'm serious."
His plate fell. Cake hit the floor.
That's when they knew.
Something wasn't right. The air had changed—heavy now, swirling against gravity. The rooftop trembled beneath their feet.
Then Ishu was gone.
Not vanished—pulled, his body jerked into a spiral of light forming in the sky above the terrace. He reached out, face stricken with panic, and Krishna didn't hesitate. He grabbed Ishu's wrist.
The pull grew stronger.
"Let go!" Ishu shouted, panic cracking through his voice. "Let go—just let me go! or you will also be-"
But Krishna held tight. "Not happening."
Debu dove, grabbing Krishna's leg with one hand and the metal railing with the other. His knuckles blanched. Adrenaline burned through his muscles.
"You're not going without me," he yelled.
Ishu twisted, eyes wet. "You idiots—why won't you just leave?!"
"No way," Krishna muttered through gritted teeth. "We're not done being stupid together."
The portal ripped harder.
Debu's grip tightened, veins pulsing like steel cords. He could feel Krishna slipping upward, Ishu already halfway swallowed by the light.
The railing cracked. Debu grip loosened and they were sucked in by the portal.
All three, locked together, bodies pressed into each other. No one screamed. No one let go.
Krishna wrapped his arm around Ishu, and Ishu—tears streaming—held them both.
"I told you to leave me," he whispered.
"Not a chance," Debu muttered.
"You guys are the worst," Ishu said, and then smiled. "Thank you."
Their eyes met one last time. Hugged each other tightly and smiled , thanking for the fun moments they shared together. They were happy as they were together.
They didn't know where they were headed.
They didn't know who they'd become.
But they knew they were going together.
Shrish broke the silence, voice cracking with both fear and mischief.
"So... where do you guys think we're going? Hell or heaven?"
Krishna smirked through the vortex's glow.
"You really think we qualify for heaven?"
Debu chimed in without missing a beat—
"Nope. Not in this life."
They all laughed.
It wasn't a belly laugh, but it was full—from their hearts, warm, alive. The kind of laugh that says if this is how it ends, at least we're together.
Shrish wiped a tear, still smiling. "Well... let's at least ask for the Wi-Fi password when we get there."
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