Page 109 - The World's Best Boyfriend

professor and I have seen dozens of you strut their fake machismo over the years
and all of them amount to nothing. You’re nothing special. So the next time
you’re standing in front of me, you stand like a f . . . student. Do I make myself

clear?’
Aranya felt like giggling but she restrained herself.
‘Sir, but what do we do to make sure it doesn’t happen again?’ asked Aranya.

‘Dhruv, you can go. And stay out of trouble,’ said Prof. Raghuvir, pointing his
pencil at him. Dhruv walked out without a second look.
‘And Aranya,’ said Raghuvir. ‘This isn’t school so stop running around after

silly assignments. You’re meant for greater things.’
‘But I don’t think anyone will hire me based on the ashes of my assignments,
Sir.’

‘Answering back won’t help either.’
‘Sorry, Sir. I didn’t mean to—’
‘It’s okay. It’s better than being a sycophant.’

‘I didn’t get you, Sir.’
‘I heard Professor Tripathi say a thousand good things about you. In a
conversation between Tripathi and a wall, the wall would win. And if you’re

running around trying to impress that God-awful professor who can’t tell a quark
from a proton, you’re wasting your time and mine.’

Despite being chastised, Aranya blushed, embarrassed as if she were naked
and he were staring. ‘I’m sorry,’ said Aranya.
‘You can go now,’ said Raghuvir. ‘And I had read your assignment when you
had submitted it. Good work.’

‘Thank you,’ said Aranya, making the slightest of fist pumps.
Aranya left the room with a sense of victory but the feeling died instantly

when she saw Dhruv waiting for her outside, arms folded across his chest, his
nervy, overbuilt arms on blatant display, a far cry from Raghuvir’s understated
yet overpowering awesomeness.
‘Aw! Look at that blush,’ said Dhruv.

‘You need to get out of my face,’ said Aranya and walked away from Dhruv.
‘I just wanted to congratulate you for your efforts inside that room.’

Aranya stopped, turned and walked up to him, and stood so close she felt she
would choke on his cheap cologne. She said, ‘The next time you do something
like that, I will crush you. I’m not saying that in the figurative sense of the word