17-04-2025, 04:36 AM
Episode 19: A Hint of Heat
The college auditorium had been transformed into a temporary workshop. Long benches lined with chart paper, glue bottles, geometry tools, and half-finished math models filled the space. The math exhibition was two days away, and the air buzzed with a rare mix of focus and chaos.
Meera moved through the space like she was made for it—efficient, calm, sari dbangd in a no-nonsense wrap that still managed to hug her waist just right. Today it was a smoky lavender cotton, plain but striking, with a boat-neck blouse that skimmed her shoulders and held close around her arms.
She was crouched next to a group charting out Pythagoras visually, explaining line symmetry and scale, her hand tracing along the chart, pallu slipped behind her waist for ease.
Arjun, just across the aisle, pretended to check the ruler length on his group’s work. He was supposed to be marking diagonals.
He wasn’t.
His eyes stayed on her waist, catching every glimpse when she shifted to reach a pen or leaned slightly forward. The soft crease of her skin just above the pleats peeked out now and then—never enough, but always just enough to keep him frozen.
She turned, her braid brushing against her back, the movement revealing a bit more curve at her side before her saree adjusted again.
He didn’t even blink.
---
A Few Minutes Later – Priya’s Nudge
Priya, leaning over the symmetry models nearby, had seen it all—again. She didn’t stare. She didn’t make it a thing. But her timing was sharp, as always.
She strolled over, carrying a bundle of extra chart paper under one arm. Meera was bent slightly, fixing a misaligned poster on the board when Priya stopped beside her.
“Need help, Miss Exhibition Queen?” Priya said, mock-formal.
Meera gave a tired smile. “They’ll survive. Barely.”
Priya glanced across the room—just once—toward Arjun, who was deeply engrossed in absolutely nothing, eyes pretending to be on a protractor.
Then she leaned in, voice low enough that only Meera could hear.
“You do realize when you crouch like that, half the room stops breathing for five seconds, right?”
Meera blinked. “What?”
Before she could say anything more, Priya gave her a quick, teasing pinch at her waist, just above the pleats—gentle but perfectly placed.
Meera jerked and laughed, swatting Priya’s hand away. “Hey!”
Priya grinned. “That saree’s working overtime. I’m just giving you real-time data.”
“You’re impossible,” Meera muttered, adjusting her pallu automatically.
“I’m honest,” Priya replied, still smiling. “I’m just saying—math’s not the only thing being studied right now.”
Meera rolled her eyes. “They’re students.”
“Exactly,” Priya said. “Which means every glance is memorized in HD.”
“I’m not even showing anything,” Meera said, half-defensive, half-amused.
“That’s what makes it worse for them,” Priya said, with a wink. “Keep moving like that, and someone’s definitely failing geometry next week.”
She walked off with her chart bundle, still grinning, leaving Meera with a half-laugh and a sudden need to re-pin her saree.
---
Across the Room – Arjun’s View
Arjun had been in a trance.
The curve of Meera Ma’am’s waist had him again—visible in soft flashes as she leaned over, her saree pleats shifting just enough to tempt but never reveal. He was used to watching her like this now, quietly, carefully, without breathing too loud.
But then something happened.
Priya walked up behind Meera. Said something. Arjun wasn’t close enough to hear—but he didn’t need to. He could feel the energy shift from across the room.
They laughed. Easy, natural.
And then—
Priya reached out and pinched Meera’s waist.
Right there. Right where Arjun had been looking.
His stomach dropped.
It hit him like a jolt—sharp, hot, electric. He wasn’t prepared for it. One second he was watching like always, safely behind the wall of imagination—and the next, someone else had crossed over into it.
Her fingers had touched the exact place he couldn’t stop dreaming about. That spot of skin just above the saree pleats. That sacred little sliver of her that Arjun had only ever seen in glimpses and filled in with fantasy.
He froze.
Goosebumps hit him like a wave.
His chest felt tight.
His fingers curled around the edge of his desk.
He didn’t even know what emotion was hitting him. Jealousy? Awe? Frustration? Desire? All of it at once?
His mind started spiraling.
How could she just touch her there like it was nothing?
Does Meera not feel it? That spot—right there—it’s everything.
She just laughed. Like it was normal. Like that part of her isn’t... magnetic.
Arjun swallowed hard. His throat felt dry. His body was hot.
Meera was already brushing her saree back into place, smiling at Priya, not even flinching. The moment passed between them like it was casual. But for him—it shattered something.
Until now, it had all been in his head. Secret. Safe.
But that pinch?
That brief, playful touch?
It made everything real.
Too real.
And now, the image wouldn’t leave him.
That hand. That spot.
That laugh.
That curve.
Burned in.
---
To be continued…
The college auditorium had been transformed into a temporary workshop. Long benches lined with chart paper, glue bottles, geometry tools, and half-finished math models filled the space. The math exhibition was two days away, and the air buzzed with a rare mix of focus and chaos.
Meera moved through the space like she was made for it—efficient, calm, sari dbangd in a no-nonsense wrap that still managed to hug her waist just right. Today it was a smoky lavender cotton, plain but striking, with a boat-neck blouse that skimmed her shoulders and held close around her arms.
She was crouched next to a group charting out Pythagoras visually, explaining line symmetry and scale, her hand tracing along the chart, pallu slipped behind her waist for ease.
Arjun, just across the aisle, pretended to check the ruler length on his group’s work. He was supposed to be marking diagonals.
He wasn’t.
His eyes stayed on her waist, catching every glimpse when she shifted to reach a pen or leaned slightly forward. The soft crease of her skin just above the pleats peeked out now and then—never enough, but always just enough to keep him frozen.
She turned, her braid brushing against her back, the movement revealing a bit more curve at her side before her saree adjusted again.
He didn’t even blink.
---
A Few Minutes Later – Priya’s Nudge
Priya, leaning over the symmetry models nearby, had seen it all—again. She didn’t stare. She didn’t make it a thing. But her timing was sharp, as always.
She strolled over, carrying a bundle of extra chart paper under one arm. Meera was bent slightly, fixing a misaligned poster on the board when Priya stopped beside her.
“Need help, Miss Exhibition Queen?” Priya said, mock-formal.
Meera gave a tired smile. “They’ll survive. Barely.”
Priya glanced across the room—just once—toward Arjun, who was deeply engrossed in absolutely nothing, eyes pretending to be on a protractor.
Then she leaned in, voice low enough that only Meera could hear.
“You do realize when you crouch like that, half the room stops breathing for five seconds, right?”
Meera blinked. “What?”
Before she could say anything more, Priya gave her a quick, teasing pinch at her waist, just above the pleats—gentle but perfectly placed.
Meera jerked and laughed, swatting Priya’s hand away. “Hey!”
Priya grinned. “That saree’s working overtime. I’m just giving you real-time data.”
“You’re impossible,” Meera muttered, adjusting her pallu automatically.
“I’m honest,” Priya replied, still smiling. “I’m just saying—math’s not the only thing being studied right now.”
Meera rolled her eyes. “They’re students.”
“Exactly,” Priya said. “Which means every glance is memorized in HD.”
“I’m not even showing anything,” Meera said, half-defensive, half-amused.
“That’s what makes it worse for them,” Priya said, with a wink. “Keep moving like that, and someone’s definitely failing geometry next week.”
She walked off with her chart bundle, still grinning, leaving Meera with a half-laugh and a sudden need to re-pin her saree.
---
Across the Room – Arjun’s View
Arjun had been in a trance.
The curve of Meera Ma’am’s waist had him again—visible in soft flashes as she leaned over, her saree pleats shifting just enough to tempt but never reveal. He was used to watching her like this now, quietly, carefully, without breathing too loud.
But then something happened.
Priya walked up behind Meera. Said something. Arjun wasn’t close enough to hear—but he didn’t need to. He could feel the energy shift from across the room.
They laughed. Easy, natural.
And then—
Priya reached out and pinched Meera’s waist.
Right there. Right where Arjun had been looking.
His stomach dropped.
It hit him like a jolt—sharp, hot, electric. He wasn’t prepared for it. One second he was watching like always, safely behind the wall of imagination—and the next, someone else had crossed over into it.
Her fingers had touched the exact place he couldn’t stop dreaming about. That spot of skin just above the saree pleats. That sacred little sliver of her that Arjun had only ever seen in glimpses and filled in with fantasy.
He froze.
Goosebumps hit him like a wave.
His chest felt tight.
His fingers curled around the edge of his desk.
He didn’t even know what emotion was hitting him. Jealousy? Awe? Frustration? Desire? All of it at once?
His mind started spiraling.
How could she just touch her there like it was nothing?
Does Meera not feel it? That spot—right there—it’s everything.
She just laughed. Like it was normal. Like that part of her isn’t... magnetic.
Arjun swallowed hard. His throat felt dry. His body was hot.
Meera was already brushing her saree back into place, smiling at Priya, not even flinching. The moment passed between them like it was casual. But for him—it shattered something.
Until now, it had all been in his head. Secret. Safe.
But that pinch?
That brief, playful touch?
It made everything real.
Too real.
And now, the image wouldn’t leave him.
That hand. That spot.
That laugh.
That curve.
Burned in.
---
To be continued…
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