The next morning, the group gathered at the resort's outdoor café for breakfast. The lake shimmered under the soft golden sunlight, birds chirped lazily, and everything felt refreshingly peaceful.
Until Shumaila walked in.
Her slightly damp hair framed her face, her casual oversized hoodie hanging just right with black joggers, making her look effortlessly beautiful and cuddly. She yawned as she plopped down into her seat, rubbing her temple, completely unaware of how every single eye in the group had turned toward her.
"Damn, Shumaila, did you even sleep?" Rudra smirked, sipping his coffee. "Oh wait, I know why. Sharing a room with Hamza is a nightmare."
Shumaila, still groggy, lazily flicked a sugar packet at his face. "Shut up before I dump coffee on you."
"That's an empty threat. You wouldn't waste coffee," Rudra shot back.
"Try me," she warned, reaching for the hot cup in front of her.
Meanwhile, Hamza, sitting at the far end of the table, silently observed her. He had noticed every little detail—the way her hoodie sleeves covered half her hands, how she rubbed her temples as if trying to push away lingering exhaustion.
"You good, man?" Aarav nudged him.
Hamza blinked, snapping out of his thoughts. "What?"
Aarav chuckled, leaning in. "You look distracted."
"I'm fine," Hamza said quickly, but he wasn't fooling anyone.
Sneha and Komal exchanged knowing glances before Komal smirked. "Alright, enough talking. We have plans today."
After breakfast, the group decided to have a canoe race on the lake. It was supposed to be a friendly match, but of course, it turned into something way more intense.
"Alright, we're going with randomized teams," Rudra announced, holding up a bowl filled with folded slips of paper.
Shumaila crossed her arms. "Randomized, huh?"
"Totally legit," Sneha said with a grin.
One by one, they picked partners, and just as planned, the final pairing was Shumaila and Hamza, Komal and Siddarth, Akansha and Aarav, Sneha and Rudra.
"No way, It's a set up!" Shumaila immediately objected.
"Sorry, names were picked randomly!" Rudra said, way too cheerfully.
Shumaila turned to Hamza, who simply smirked at her.
"Scared of me?" he challenged.
She scoffed. "No, I'm scared you'll slow me down."
"We'll see about that."
The teams lined up at the edge of the lake, paddles in hand.
"Ready? Set… GO!" Aarav shouted.
Within seconds, pure chaos erupted.
Komal & Siddarth were already bickering.
"Row properly, dumbass!"
"Maybe if you weren't yelling, I could!"
Sneha & Rudra nearly tipped their canoe over.
"STOP MOVING!"
"I CAN'T HELP IT, THE BOAT IS POSSESSED!"
Meanwhile, Aarav & Akansha were actually working well together, their movements synchronized, which made Akansha blush when Sneha called it out.
But the real disaster was Shumaila & Hamza.
"You're rowing too slow!" Shumaila snapped.
"Maybe you're rowing too fast," Hamza countered smoothly.
"That doesn't even make sense—"
Before she could finish, their canoe suddenly tipped over.
SPLASH!
The rest of the group erupted into laughter as both of them surfaced, completely soaked.
Shumaila wiped water from her face, glaring at Hamza. "This is your fault."
"I'm pretty sure you were the one overcompensating," Hamza replied casually, running a hand through his wet hair.
Without thinking, Shumaila splashed water at him.
Hamza blinked, then grinned mischievously. "Oh, you want to play that game?"
Before she could escape, he lunged, pulling her under the water.
The group cheered as the two resurfaced, laughing breathlessly.
But then it happened.
For a split second, as they caught their breath, Shumaila and Hamza just… stared at each other.
Water dripped down her cheek. Hamza's hand still lingered near her wrist.
She felt her heart stutter. And then—
"HEY LOVE BIRDS!" Rudra shouted. "NEED A MOMENT?"
The spell broke instantly.
Shumaila pushed Hamza away, face burning, and swam toward shore.
Later that night, the group gathered around a crackling bonfire, enjoying drinks and snacks. The air was warm, and the lake reflected the flickering flames beautifully.
"Alright, Truth or Dare time!" Komal declared.
The dares started off lighthearted:
Siddarth had to sing a dramatic love song.
Rudra had to do an embarrassing dance.
Sneha was dared to prank call a professor.
Aarav admitted he had a childhood crush on a cartoon character.
The group was dying of laughter until the attention finally turned to Hamza.
"Hamza," Aarav said, smirking. "Truth or Dare?"
Hamza exhaled. "Dare."
Aarav's smirk widened. "Whisper something you've never told Shumaila. Right in her ear."
The group erupted into chaos.
"OHHHH!"
"YES! DO IT!"
Shumaila shot Aarav a glare. "I hate you."
Hamza, meanwhile, looked completely calm.
He turned to Shumaila and leaned in so close that she felt his breath against her ear.
His voice was low, husky. "You have no idea how hard it is to stay away from you."
Shumaila froze.
Her breath hitched, her body going rigid. Her mind screamed at her to not react, but her heart was pounding so fast it hurt.
Hamza leaned back, watching her reaction closely.
She slowly turned to face him, eyes wide, but he only gave her a knowing smirk.
The group, oblivious to what was whispered, demanded to know what was said.
"Nothing important," Hamza said casually, taking a sip of his drink.
But Shumaila? She knew it was anything but.