BRO
CThe science fair had finally begun.
The entire venue was filled with excitement, nervous whispers, and the restless energy of hundreds of students. Models were placed neatly on tables, charts hung behind them, and teachers moved around giving last-minute instructions.
But in the middle of all that noise…
I could hear only one thing.
My heartbeat.
I was nervous.
More nervous than I had ever been before.
But then I looked beside me.
Payel was standing there.
Calm. Focused. Beautiful in her own quiet way.
And somehow… just her presence made everything feel a little easier.
"Our presentation will be in two parts," she said softly, going through the instructions again. "First, they'll check the model. Then the group leader has to present in front of everyone."
I nodded.
But inside, I knew something.
I couldn't do the second part.
Not today.
Not with this pressure.
I turned to her.
"Payel… can you be the group leader?"
She looked at me, slightly surprised.
"Are you sure?"
I hesitated for a second… then nodded.
"Yes. I trust you."
She smiled.
"Okay."
That one word felt like relief.
---
We were the 7th group.
One by one, teams were being called. Some spoke confidently, some stumbled, some impressed the judges, some didn't.
And with every passing minute…
My nervousness increased.
"Group number 7."
Our turn.
We walked forward together.
The judges stood in front of our table, observing our model carefully. Their expressions were serious, unreadable.
"This is your model?" one of them asked.
"Yes, sir," I replied.
"Explain."
I took a deep breath.
"This project is based on planetary gravity and orbital motion," I began. "It demonstrates how gravitational force varies across different planets and how it affects movement in space."
As I spoke, my confidence slowly returned.
I explained everything — mass, radius, gravitational differences, and how objects behave differently on each planet.
The judges listened carefully.
Then one of them asked,
"How did you gather this information?"
I replied honestly,
"Sir, our science teacher guided us a lot. He helped us understand the concepts properly."
They nodded.
Then came the real challenge.
Questions.
Difficult ones.
"Why is gravity less on Mars compared to Earth?"
I answered.
"Because Mars has less mass compared to Earth, sir."
Next question.
"What is the relation between gravity and radius?"
I tried to answer.
But suddenly…
My voice shook.
Words got stuck.
My mind went blank.
I started stammering.
And for the first time…
I felt like I was losing control.
Then—
A warm touch.
Payel.
She gently held my hand.
I looked at her.
She didn't say anything.
But her eyes said everything.
I'm here.
She stepped slightly forward and continued,
"Sir, gravitational force depends on both mass and radius. A planet with larger mass and smaller radius will have stronger gravity…"
Her voice was steady.
Confident.
Clear.
She answered every question perfectly.
As if she was born for that moment.
And I just stood there…
Looking at her.
Realizing something.
She wasn't just supporting me.
She was saving me.
---
After a few more questions, the judges nodded.
"Good work," one of them said.
And then they moved to the next table.
The moment they left, I let out a deep breath.
My heart was still racing.
But not because of fear anymore.
Because of her.
She was still holding my hand.
And for the first time…
I didn't want her to let go.
When I looked at her, I noticed something.
She was blushing.
I smiled slightly.
"Thank you, madam," I said teasingly. "If you weren't here today, I would have definitely ruined everything."
She looked at me and smiled.
"Aree baba, it's okay. You presented really well."
We both laughed.
After that, we sat down and started talking — random gossip, jokes about Amrita ma'am, even teasing Sanjay sir.
Slowly, the tension faded.
---
After all the groups finished, the judges went for discussion.
Those 30 minutes felt like the longest time of my life.
Every second felt heavy.
My heart kept asking—
Did we do enough?
Then finally, everyone was called together.
The results were about to be announced.
A teacher stepped forward with a microphone.
"So, we have carefully checked all your projects. You all have done very good work…"
My heart started pounding again.
"But we can only select three winners."
Third prize.
My breath stopped.
"First prize goes to… Soumyadeep and Shreyeashri…"
Applause.
"Second prize goes to… Amiyo and Gourima…"
More applause.
And then—
Silence.
My heart dropped.
We didn't win.
I looked down.
All that effort…
All those moments…
Was it not enough?
Then suddenly, Payel spoke softly,
"Stay calm."
I looked at her.
"I know we'll win."
Her confidence felt stronger than mine.
---
"And now… third prize goes to…"
A pause.
"…Sarthak and Payel, for their project on planetary gravity."
For a second…
I didn't react.
I couldn't.
Then Payel shook my arm slightly.
"I told you."
And suddenly, everything hit me at once.
We won.
Without thinking…
I hugged her.
Tightly.
Right there.
In front of everyone.
For a moment, she froze.
Then slowly…
She relaxed.
I realized what I had just done.
And immediately stepped back.
"I—I'm sorry—"
She looked down, blushing deeply.
Before things could get awkward, Sanjay sir came from behind and hugged both of us.
"You've done a great job," he said proudly.
---
After receiving the prize, we returned to school.
And then…
It started raining.
Suddenly.
Heavily.
We stood in the corridor, watching the rain fall.
The world felt calm.
Peaceful.
I looked at her.
"Hey… did you feel uncomfortable?" I asked quietly. "Because I hugged you in front of everyone."
She looked at me, slightly surprised.
Then she smiled softly.
"No… I didn't feel uncomfortable."
A pause.
"I felt your happiness."
That one sentence…
Stayed in my heart.
---
Sanjay sir walked past us and said,
"You both have great coordination. I expect the same in future."
We both looked at each other.
It felt like…
He understood everything.
---
We left the school together and took a rickshaw.
She sat beside me.
Close.
Quiet.
I kept looking at her.
Not directly.
But enough to memorize every detail.
When her stop came, she got down.
Before leaving, she handed me a small folded paper.
Then she left.
Without saying anything.
I opened it slowly.
And read—
"Maybe gravity attracts things…
And maybe the universe also wants us to be together."
For a moment…
I couldn't move.
My heart started racing again.
Faster than ever.
Does this mean… she likes me too?
That night, I couldn't sleep.
Not because of the competition.
Not because of the prize.
But because of one thought—
Maybe… she feels the same.
And when sleep finally came…
I saw her.
Standing in front of me.
Smiling.
And in that dream…
I gently kissed her forehead.
---
To be continued…