( Kavin's POV )
The rain hadn't slowed. If anything, it had found new energy, lashing against the tin roof of the shed like it held a grudge against the world.
Kavin stood by the doorframe, one hand braced against the splintered wood, his baggy T-shirt clinging to his back like a second, soggy skin.
The air was heavy with petrichor and humidity, wrapping around him like a damp blanket. In front of him, Vihaan leaned against the opposite wall—quiet, shoulders hunched, rainwater trailing slow paths down his cotton shirt. The thin white fabric was practically transparent now, plastered against his skin, and Kavin could just make out the ridges of his collarbones.
He should look away.
He didn't.
Noticing Vihaan shiver, Kavin realized, distantly, that he himself was cold too. The kind of cold that sat under your skin and whispered its way into your bones. Still, it surprised him how quickly the thought surfaced: Would it be weird if I pulled him close?
That was new.
He tilted his head slightly, squinting at Vihaan through the veil of slight mist in the musty room. No, he didn't know him well—barely a day since they'd first met—but that didn't explain this oddly magnetic pull, this curiosity dressed up as concern. Kavin frowned at himself. Where was this even coming from?
He blinked, clearing the thought like fog off a lens. "Want to huddle up?" he asked casually, brushing damp curls out of his eyes. "For warmth, I mean."
Vihaan turned to him, visibly uncertain, but eventually nodded. A few hesitant steps and they were close. Not touching, but sharing breath. The air between them shimmered with unspoken words.
Vihaan's ears were tinged pink, his cheeks flushed from cold—or maybe something else. Kavin glanced at his hands. They looked pale. Too pale.
Without thinking, he reached out and took them.
"You're freezing," Kavin murmured. They were like ice. Cold. Like porcelain left out in winter.
Vihaan stiffened slightly but didn't pull away. He simply looked to the side, face unreadable.
Kavin's heart didn't race. Not quite. But something shifted inside him, like a page being turned mid-sentence. He let Vihaan's hands go after a few seconds, stuffing his own into his pockets with a shrug that tried too hard to be nonchalant.
"You're going to catch a fever," he mumbled.
Vihaan said nothing, just gave a tiny nod, eyes still fixed on the downpour.
---
The hot water in the shower stung his skin in the best way. It chased out the cold, the uncertainty, the quiet thrill of standing too close to someone he didn't understand yet.
Kavin stepped out into his room, towel draped around his neck, hair dripping onto his T-shirt. He reached for another towel to mop up the mess, only to freeze mid-step.
"Wha—IRA?"
His sister lay sprawled across his bed like she owned the place, her legs crossed, a packet of chips in one hand and his sketchpad in the other.
"Surprised?" she asked, not even looking up.
"Weren't you on an overnight trip?"
"I was. It's Wednesday, remember?" She popped a chip in her mouth. "We returned this evening. You should keep better track of your days."
"I do keep track—wait, it's Wednesday already?"
She looked up, smirking. "You look like someone who's been steam-pressed by the gods."
"I got caught in the rain," Kavin muttered, towel-drying his hair. "Also, get off my bed. Your presence is lowering the IQ of the room."
Ira rolled over and stretched like a lazy cat. "You say that like it was high to begin with."
He chucked the damp towel at her. She yelped and threw a pillow back.
"Okay, okay," she said, sitting up. "So. Rain. Tell me everything."
Kavin paused. "I was with someone. Vihaan."
She blinked. "Vihaan."
"From the Science Club."
"Ah. The Nerd Cult."
"Be nice," Kavin said, despite the grin twitching at his mouth. "He's... different. Sharp. Thoughtful. The kind of guy who notices when someone rearranges the chairs in the room but doesn't say anything about it."
Ira tilted her head. "Sounds like someone's got a new favourite lab rat."
"It's not like that," Kavin said, but the way his voice softened gave him away.
She didn't push. Just smiled knowingly and flipped the page of his sketchbook.
They talked easily, the way only siblings close in age and spirit could. She told him about her overnight trip—how her best friend had snored like an elephant and how she nearly got chased by a very territorial street dog.
---
The next day was drier. The earth still smelled like yesterday's storm, and the puddles glistened like spilled ink.
By the time classes ended, the corridors were awash in golden light filtered through tall windows. The air smelled like notebooks and pencils, and the collective energy of students preparing to escape into the real world for the day.
Kavin walked alongside Tanya toward the art room, their steps unhurried.
"I checked the new glaze samples," Tanya said, "The sea-green one is going to look bomb with your teacup design."
"You mean our teacup design," Kavin corrected, bumping her shoulder lightly.
She sniffed. "Only because I let you use my stencils."
Kavin smiled. "You're impossible."
"I know." Tanya tossed her sleek ponytail over her shoulder. "And charming."
"The ceramics workshop is tomorrow," she sighed, scanning the list of participants on her phone. "And we still don't have enough trays. Unless we want everyone balancing wet clay on their forearms."
"Now that's performance art," Kavin quipped.
Tanya shot him a look. "Don't tempt me. You know I'll make it a theme."
She wore an oversized denim jacket today, sleeves rolled up to her elbows, Her boots made confident thuds with every step. Tanya was a thunderstorm packed into five feet and three inches of absolute conviction.
Kavin liked her. She was the kind of person who said what everyone else was too scared to think.
As they turned a corner near the science wing, Kavin slowed. His eyes caught the familiar clubroom door.
"Go on ahead, I'll catch up," he said. "Just remembered something."
Tanya stopped, gave him a slow, unreadable once-over.
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing." She smiled faintly. "You're acting weird. But like... interesting weird."
He raised a brow.
She shrugged, lips twitching in amusement.
"I'll go. But you owe me tea tomorrow. With cookies."
"You drive a hard bargain."
"Damn right I do."
She walked off, humming under her breath, still half-smiling, her boots echoing down the hall.
Kavin leaned against the wall next to the Science Club door.
The final bell rang.
And somewhere beyond that door, he knew Vihaan was probably packing up his things, fixing his sleeves, adjusting his bag like he always did—precise, quiet, inward.
Kavin waited.
The rain might have passed, but something else had begun to pour—slow, quiet, and entirely unexpected.