The sound of the classroom door opening made Arav stir slightly. He lifted his head and opened his eyes. The class felt completely quiet. On the board, the class teacher, Mr. Rajesh Verma, had already started teaching.
Arav immediately opened his notebook and began writing. Whatever was written on the board, he copied with full focus. Sometimes his eyes were on the board, sometimes on his notebook. Whenever the teacher asked questions, Arav tried to avoid eye contact. He didn't want to be asked anything.
The next periods passed normally too.After Maths came Science, then English. Teachers came and went, kept teaching. The class kept making noise. Arav kept listening, kept writing, and whenever the lecture slowed down, he rested his head on the desk for a while.
Around 6:00 in the evening, the final bell rang.
It was as if electricity ran through the whole school.
Students stood up instantly. Bags were being packed, benches scraped, voices filled the room. Some rushed toward the gate, some called out to their friends. Rohit was telling Sameer they would fix tomorrow's match. In some corner, someone was cursing their homework.
Arav packed his bag too, closed the zip, put it on his shoulder, and walked out of the class.He headed straight for the school gate.
His house was about a fifteen-minute walk from school. The evening street was full of its usual noise—autos, cycles, shopkeepers, people talking.
After a while, he stopped in front of a two-storey house.He rang the bell.
Footsteps came running from inside.
The door opened, and his little sister Anaya stood there.
"Bhaaaai!" she shouted and hugged him tightly.
Arav laughed. He put his bag down and lifted her into his arms.Jokingly he said, "Miss, you're getting heavier every day."
Anaya giggled and told him she had won a drawing competition at school today.
Arav carried her inside.
From the kitchen, his mother Sunita came out. She lovingly asked how school was and whether he was hungry.
Arav replied in a relaxed tone that school was fine, and yes, he was hungry.
Spinning Anaya once around the living room, he made her sit on the sofa and turned on the TV, putting on cartoons.
Then he went upstairs to his room.
His room was simple and clean—a bed, a study table, a cupboard, and in one corner an exercise mat with some basic equipment.
He changed out of his uniform, put on fresh clothes, took a bath, and came back downstairs.
As soon as he came down, he called Anaya and sat on the floor to play with her. Sometimes he built towers with blocks, sometimes he deliberately knocked them down to make her laugh.
Anaya laughed loudly. Arav talked freely, joked, and told her funny school moments.
After a while, the gate opened and his father, Rakesh Sharma, came home from work.
Arav stood up immediately. "How was the office, Papa?"
Rakesh smiled. "Same as always—work, files, and tiredness."
Arav took his bag, gave him water, and said that Mom might be making something special today.
In the evening, the whole family sat together for a while. Sunita was preparing dinner in the kitchen. Anaya was sharing her school stories. Rakesh was watching the news and commenting in between. Arav talked normally—laughing, reacting, completely natural.
At that moment, no one could have said that this same boy was the "Silent Boy" at school.
After some time, Arav stood up and said he would rest for a bit.He went upstairs to his room.
Sitting on his bed, he picked up his smartphone and scrolled casually—reels, messages, music.
The room was filled with a normal evening silence.
A completely normal day…a completely normal boy…a completely normal life.
The next part will introduce a female character.Till then… wait.