Vihaan's POV
Let's clarify something.
I don't do cute. I don't do romantic tension. And I definitely don't do "impressing girls."
I do chaos.
So when Abhishek came to me with that stupid grin on his face, I already knew something illegal-for-school-hours was loading.
"Bro," he said, "tomorrow's chemistry practical?"
"Yeah."
"What if… we slightly upgrade it?"
I narrowed my eyes. "Define upgrade."
He leaned closer. "Harmless smoke reaction. Extra dramatic."
I stared at him for five seconds. Then I smiled.
"Say less."
________________________________________
The Plan
It wasn't even about Kiara. It was about boredom. It was about surviving school without dying of repetition.
We swapped one harmless compound bottle with another that would create more visible fumes during a reaction. Nothing dangerous. Just… dramatic.
The kind of smoke that makes the whole class scream and the teacher panic for 4 seconds.
Iconic behavior.
________________________________________
The Execution
Chemistry lab.
Everyone serious. Goggles on. Kiara in front row. Focused. Of course. She probably treats practicals like MasterChef finals.
Abhishek elbowed me. "Ready?"
"Don't mess it up."
Siddharth mixed his solution.
Nothing happened. Then Dhruv. Normal.
Then Abhishek dramatically added his solution. For three seconds? Nothing.
Then —
POOF.
White smoke rising dramatically like we summoned a ghost. Half the class screamed. Someone dropped a test tube.
Teacher rushed forward. "WHO MIXED THAT?"
Abhishek acted shocked. "Ma'am I followed the steps!"
I leaned back casually, pretending confusion.
The class buzzed with chaos.
And then I looked. At her. Kiara wasn't scared. She was… laughing.
Actually laughing.
Hand over her mouth. Eyes shining. She turned to Sasha and whispered something.
Sasha giggled too.
I don't know why that annoyed me. She didn't even look at me.
Not once.
BRO I HELPED CREATE THE MOMENT.
Where is my credit?
________________________________________
Aftermath
We got a warning.
Almost detention.
Worth it.
While walking back, Abhishek nudged me.
"She laughed."
"I know."
"At you."
"No. At the situation."
He smirked. "You noticed though."
"Shut up."
Later in class, everyone was still talking about the smoke incident.
"Epic."
"Bro that was mad."
"Almost got expelled."
Kiara was explaining the actual chemical reaction calmly to someone.
"Technically it was because of the composition change," she said.
She wasn't impressed. She wasn't suspicious. She wasn't even curious. Just analytical.
Like it was a science case study.
I don't know why but that pissed me off slightly.
Be shocked. Be angry. Be something.
But no.
She just moved on.
Like we don't exist.
________________________________________
The Real Irritation
I don't want her attention. I don't need it.
But the fact that she doesn't notice me at all. That's irritating.
Arjun gets looks.
Mayank gets texts.
Even Abhishek gets arguments.
Me?
I'm just background noise. And I hate that it bothers me. So fucking annoying.
________________________________________
The smoke cleared. The class settled. The day ended.
She walked past me while leaving.
Close enough that I caught her perfume for half a second.
Didn't look at me. Didn't slow down. Nothing.
Good.
Perfect.
Exactly how I planned it.
Then why does it feel like I lost something
I wasn't even playing for?
Stupid.
Absolutely stupid. I'm beyond annoyed right now.
________________________________________
## Kiara's POV – "Wait… We're Allowed To Talk About This?"
It was supposed to be a counselling session.
You know. Mental health. Exam stress.
"Share your feelings."
That kind of thing.
I carried my notebook like a responsible citizen.
Ready to take notes.
Because I take notes for everything.
Counsellor ma'am smiled and said,
"Today we'll talk about relationships."
Whole class froze.
Then someone snorted.
"Specifically… love triangles."
The room EXPLODED.
Siddharth almost choked.
Dhruv leaned back like he's about to watch a movie.
Abhishek whispered, "Oh this is going to be fun."
And I?
I sat there blinking.
We're allowed to talk about this?
In school?
Legally?
So deep.
---
Ma'am continued calmly,
"Why do love triangles create tension?"
Sasha immediately raised her hand. Of course she did.
"Because someone always gets hurt."
Hmm. Valid.
Dhruv added,
"Because of unclear communication."
Wow. Mature. Who are you and what have you done with Dhruv?
Siddharth said dramatically,
"Because people can't decide."
The class laughed.
I scribbled in my notebook:
*Love triangles = emotional inefficiency.*
Abhishek raised his hand.
This is where I knew disaster was loading.
"Ma'am, what if one person doesn't even know they're in a triangle?"
The class went "OOOOOOOOOOO."
I rolled my eyes.
These idiots.
Ma'am smiled knowingly.
"That happens often."
I nodded thoughtfully.
Poor clueless person.
Must be embarrassing.
Imagine being in a triangle and not knowing.
Damn.
Couldn't be me.
---
## Vihaan's POV – "This Is Bullshit."
The moment she said "love triangles," I wanted to leave.
This is school.
Why are we discussing emotional geometry?
I leaned back, arms crossed.
Abhishek was already grinning like a criminal.
When he said that line —
"What if one person doesn't even know?"
Half the class looked in one direction.
Her.
She was writing.
Writing.
While being the literal topic.
How the hell is she so unaware?
I felt this weird mix of irritation and… something else.
It's almost cute.
No.
Not cute.
Annoying.
Very fucking annoying.
---
## Back to Kiara
Ma'am asked,
"What should someone do if two people like them?"
Sasha's jaw tightened slightly.
Dhruv said calmly,
"Choose based on compatibility."
Siddharth added,
"Or stay single and focus on studies."
I raised my hand.
Because why not.
"If exams are near, postpone emotional drama."
The whole class burst out laughing.
Abhishek clapped slowly.
"Topper mindset."
I shrugged.
I mean?
Am I wrong?
Ma'am smiled.
"That's actually practical advice."
Ha. Validation.
Love is temporary.
Internal marks are permanent.
Priorities, people.
---
## Vihaan Again
When she said that, I almost laughed.
"Postpone emotional drama."
She has no idea how much emotional drama is literally circling her like mosquitoes.
Arjun sitting two rows ahead — stiff.
Mayank staring at his desk.
Sasha unusually quiet.
And she's giving TED Talk advice.
I shook my head.
Clueless genius.
I hate that I find it interesting.
---
## The Final Blow
Ma'am ended with,
"Sometimes, the person in the middle doesn't notice because they're focused on something else."
The class went silent.
Again, subtle glances.
I followed the direction of their eyes.
Her.
Still unaware.
She leaned toward Sasha and whispered, "Why is everyone acting weird?"
Sasha forced a smile. "No idea."
I bit back a smirk.
This is comedy.
High-level comedy.
---
## Kiara's Inner Thoughts
Honestly?
I'm impressed.
Our school casually discussing love triangles?
Growth.
Progress.
Emotional education.
Maybe we're maturing. Maybe this section isn't just chaos and curses. Maybe we're evolving.
So deep.
Also I'm glad I'm not in any triangle. Sounds exhausting. I already have trigonometry. That's enough triangles for one lifetime.
Damn. 😌🔥
-------
Meanwhile,
Half the class knows.
Two boys are overthinking.
One grumpy idiot is pretending he doesn't care.
And I'm just here solving maths.
Iconic.