The Debate Competition - Finals
"And the winners of the Inter-College Debate Competition are... Neel Sharma and Shanaya Rajput from St. Xavier's College!"
The auditorium erupted in applause. On stage, Neel and Shanaya looked at each other and grinned.
As they walked off stage with their trophy, Shanaya whispered, "Remember when we couldn't stand each other?"
"Vaguely," Neel replied, taking her hand. "That feels like a different lifetime."
"Because it was. That was before we knew."
"Before we knew what?"
"That we were always meant to find each other. Even if it took fake IDs and random chance."
Later, sitting in their usual spot in the library, both scrolling through their phones, Shanaya laughed.
"What?" Neel asked.
"Nakul just messaged Akanksha. He wants to know where she's been."
"Tell him Akanksha found her happy ending and doesn't need to hide anymore."
"What about Amira? She's asking if Arnav is okay."
"Tell her Arnav realized he was actually a she, and she's sitting right next to the person who makes her happiest."
They looked at each other and burst out laughing.
"We're ridiculous," Shanaya said.
"Completely," Neel agreed.
"I love it."
"Me too."
One Last Message
That night, they decided to send one final message as A and S.
A & S (joint message to all their online friends):
"Thank you for being part of our story. We met as strangers, became friends as fake identities, and fell in love as ourselves. This is our last message as A and S. From now on, we're just Neel and Shanaya. Two people who found an unexpected connection in the most unexpected way."
"If you're reading this and you're hiding behind a screen, afraid to be yourself: take the risk. Be vulnerable. The person meant for you might be closer than you think."
"Signed, The Boy Who Pretended to Be a Girl and The Girl Who Pretended to Be a Boy."
"(We found each other anyway.)"