Aditya's POV
The teasing hadn't ended.
If anything, it had multiplied overnight.
The next morning, we reached class early, and I barely had time to sit before Rohan leaned across his desk like he was about to announce breaking news.
"So… Indhu's dream is now officially being adapted into a movie. Title: Navami – The Mallu Girlfriend."
I stiffened instantly. Here we go again.
Charlotte clasped her hands dramatically. "Scene one: new transfer student enters. Long hair, bright eyes, slow-motion walk, wind in her hair."
Swetha jumped up, imitating a teacher. "Class, this is Navami! Please clap for her!"
They all started clapping like lunatics.
I stared straight ahead, flipping my pen between my fingers, pretending I didn't care. I absolutely did. My ears felt hot — which was annoying, because it meant they were winning.
Indhu covered her face. "Stoppp, this is so embarrassing!"
Rohan continued in a deep narrator voice.
"Scene two. Aditya sees her for the first time. Camera zooms in. Background music swells. He. Is. Stunned."
They all turned toward me at once.
I kept my face blank, but I could feel the redness creeping up. Great. Betrayed by my own ears.
"Guys, please," Indhu groaned. "It was just a dream!"
Charlotte leaned closer to her, eyes sparkling with mischief.
"Dreams reveal the truth, Indhu. Maybe you saw something before the rest of us."
I glanced at Indhu for half a second. She looked genuinely panicked now.
"Whaaat? No! Don't twist it like that!" she protested.
Their laughter grew so loud that even other classmates started staring. I sank a little lower in my seat, wondering how I'd survived school so long without dying of embarrassment.
Lunch didn't save me. It made things worse.
Indhu pulled out her phone, giggling.
"Okay, okay, you want Navami? Here."
She showed them a picture — a soft, Ghibli-style drawing of a girl with long hair and bright eyes.
"This," Indhu declared, "is Navami. Straight from my imagination."
Swetha gasped dramatically. "She's… gorgeous. Adi, you're so lucky."
Rohan wiped fake tears. "Bro, I'll miss you when you go off to Kerala to marry her."
Charlotte patted my shoulder like I was being sent off to war.
"Say something poetic to your dream girl, hero."
I sighed, leaning back. There was no escape anyway.
My eyes flickered toward Indhu — just for a moment — before I smiled.
"…She looks familiar. Maybe because Indhu made her up."
They exploded with laughter, brushing it off as another joke.
But what I didn't say — what no one noticed — was the quiet warmth that came with it. Because somehow, the fact that Indhu imagined her made it different. Softer. Personal.
As we packed up to leave, Rohan shouted down the corridor,
"COMING SOON: NAVAMI – THE MOVIE! Starring Indhu as director, Charlotte as scriptwriter, Swetha as producer, and Adi as the suffering hero!"
Indhu chased him down the stairs, half-scolding, half-laughing.
Charlotte and Swetha followed, still giggling and shaking their heads.
I walked behind them, slower than usual.
Smiling.
A small, fleeting smile — the kind no one notices.