Yash let his hand rest over hers on the handle, grounding them both for a second. He caught her eye with a small, lopsided smile. "I'm Yash, since we're being formal. And what do I call you, miss?"
"I'm not telling you anything," she snapped, her voice cracking as a tear finally spilled over. She gripped the wheels of her chair, shoving them forward.
"Now that I know who you are, Yash... I'm reporting you. You're going to be in so much trouble."
Sprinting, he refused to let her vanish past the gates.
"Please—forgive me! I'll pay you!" he shrieked, losing it completely.
He slammed into the gate and lost his balance; the sudden impact sent the wheelchair tilting before she hit the ground.
The Collison was weak; he scrambled back up, fuelled by Dheeru and Vini's distant laughter.
Ram's face fell. "Maybe we should go over. Yash looks bad."
"Nah, he's fine. Let him have his moment," Vini laughed, pointing back at Yash. "Don't you want your boy to finally land a girlfriend?"
"Are you alright?" Yash's expression crumpled when she crumpled back to the ground.
She began laughing so uncontrollably that Yash backed away, unnerved. "It's been so long," she cackled, "since I've enjoyed myself like this."
"I was just playing with your head—I'm not actually complaining," she choked out, unable to catch her breath through the laughter.
Helping her back into the chair, Yash locked eyes with her. 'You were playing me, weren't you?' He broke into a laugh, and they both spiralled into a long, shared moment of joy.
"Stuti Tiwari," she said with a small smile, hand to her chest. "That's my name."
Yash guided her wheelchair through the park, his hands steady on the grips. For the next fifteen minutes, they were lost in conversation, eyes meeting frequently through shared smiles.
"Hey, Yash Time's, up" Dheeru shouted, his hands megaphone-style around his lips.
"Yeah, yeah Give me a minute" Yash shouted over his shoulder as he made a break for the gate.
"I've got to head out, Stuti. Can I walk you home first?" Yash asked, signalling to Dheeru to wait a second.
"I'm good! I've got my car right here," she said with a smirk, gesturing to her chair.
As she started to leave, Yash caught the back of her chair to slow her down. "Wait—can we meet here again? Saturday morning, ten o'clock?"
"I'd love to," she replied. "See you then."
"Since you're new here, maybe I could show you the canal and the temple just outside the park?"
"It's a deal," she called back, rolling through the gates.
Yash raced back to them and lunged for Ram's shoulders, nearly knocking him.
"So, you got the girl, huh?" Dheeru teased, a smile playing on his lips.
"Not yet. I just told her to meet me Saturday at ten, since we're free until noon anyway," Yash said.
"You get her number?" Ram questioned.
Yash went silent for a beat, the colour draining from his face.
"Are you for real? Are we living in the stone age?" Dheeru deadpanned, locking eyes with Yash. "Thirty minutes of talking and you didn't even ask for a number?"
"Unbelievable," Dheeru laughed. "I'd have found out her blood type and her father's middle name in half that time, and you walked away with nothing."
"Give me a break! Don't rub it in," Yash said, shaking his head. "We're meeting Saturday. It's fine."