Chapter One

"Hey hey Fam!" Kalyani Singh sang as she let herself into her best friend's house. It had been raining cats and dogs earlier this morning but it was only drizzling lightly now. She shook off the water in her hair and took off her rubber boots, placing them by the door. 

She made her way to the sitting room and met her friend Sarita's seven year old brother Abhimaan, staring at the blank screen of the TV looking sad. He looked as if his favorite pet fish just died and he wasn't going to get a replacement.

"What's up, Maan?" She dropped down on the sofa beside him with a wide smile on her face then ruffled his hair. He hated it when she did that but he didn't even flinch now.

"I don't want to go to school today, but Papa says I have to." Maan replied with a frown on his face. "It's not a must."

Kalyani sighed. "Same here, Maan." She patted his shoulder. She didn't like school herself but she knew she couldn't live off her parents hard earned money either. "I don't want to go either but we've got no choice now, do we? We've to study so that later, we can enjoy ourselves when we've made our money." She said, then made a face. 

"I mean, you won't see me wanting to go back to school after becoming a billionaire."

Maan nodded with a smile. "True." He agreed. "I'm going to become the president of this country when I grow up. That'll only happen if I go to school."

"That's my boy." She grinned and high fived him.

"Kalyani, you're here." Supriya Madhav said when she walked into the room and saw her.

"Namaste, aunt." Kalyani stood up and rushed to touch her feet.

"Namaste. How are your parents and sister?" Priya smiled.

"They're fine. Thank you aunt." Kalyani replied. "What about uncle Jevan?"

"He had to leave early." Priya answered.

"In that rain?" Kalyani's eyes widened. 

Priya shrugged. "He wouldn't listen to me so I let him go. You've had breakfast?" She asked Kalyani.

"Yes aunt." Kaly smiled. "Aunt, where's Sarita?"

"She's in her room. You know where it is." Priya smiled.

Kalyani smiled back and went in search of her friend. Her friend's house was a three bedroom apartment situated in a suburban area where the houses all looked the same. White painted walls, same backyard layout with only white picket fences separating them.

It was a quiet area but it wasn't as quiet as Kaly's gated community.

Kalyani knocked twice on her friend's bedroom door, waited for Sarita to call her in and opened the door.

"Hey bestie." She walked into the room and shut the door.

"Namaste, Kaly." Sarita smiled and gestured for her to take a seat as she stood in front of her dressing mirror knotting her tie. "You came in the rain?"

"Papa's driver dropped me off." Kaly said. "Mom, of course, didn't let me leave without an umbrella. You know how she is." She shook her head. "Anyway, please tell me you did the homework on world history?"

"Yes I did and I did yours too, so you owe me." Sarita informed her.

"Really? Thank you bestie!" Kaly rushed to hug her tight. "All of your wishes are my command from now on."

Sarita finally knotted her tie, straightened her shirt and turned to face her friend. "How do I look?"

"Gorgeous bestie, as always." Kaly gave her a thumbs up.

"Thank you." She beamed. She took a deep breath and hoped that Raj would notice her today. She'd had the same hope and wish every day for the past three years, all to no avail. 

On Saturday, she'd gone out with Kaly to the salon and had her long hair cut very short in a bob style. Now, her auburn hair was shinier and a little curly at the ends.

"Don't fuss." Kaly reprimanded her. "He'll notice."

"You think so?" She looked hopeful.

"Well…," Kaly sighed. "It'll be his loss and someone else's gain if another boy notices you."

Sarita wouldn't say she didn't have an attractive face because she did, but it obviously wasn't attractive enough to get the attention of the boy she'd crushed on for years; Rajveer Chaturvedi or even... any other boy for that matter. 

"You would be surprised who you'll see if you just take a look around you." Kaly told her. "Take your eyes off Raj for one minute."

Sarita sighed. It was easy for Kalyani to say. She was drop dead gorgeous, rich and had the best boyfriend in the world. She (Sarita) was from a middle class family, attending the best school in the state on scholarship and was an honorary student with her GPA at 4.0. 

"Let's go." Kaly headed to the door. "You still have to eat breakfast and you eat slower than a snail."

"I do not." Sarita frowned.

"Yes, you do." Kaly shot her a cheeky grin before leaving the room.

Sarita grabbed her phone and key and purse then dumped the items inside her bag before she left her room. Just to prove Kalyani wrong about her eating habit, she ate faster than she always did and they left the house exactly at 6:45. They had to catch the school bus or else they'd have no choice but to commute to school.

"Did you hear about Vikrant's party coming up this weekend? I heard it's going to be big." Kalyani said. "Will you go?"

"You know very well that I don't like parties, much less the one Vikrant Suryavanshi throws. They're always R-rated." Sarita visibly shuddered, just thinking about the one she saw on Kaly's phone.

"Not all of them." Kaly said.

"Who cares." Sarita grumbled. "Besides, my parents will never let me go even if I want to... which I don't."

"I'll go." Kaly shrugged. "Samishka is going."

Samishka Singh loved to party. She never missed any party; be it, someone younger than she was throwing the party or her college mates but every young adult in Castleton Cross county knew that Vikrant Mayank Suryavanshi threw the best parties.

"Okay." Sarita said. She wished her friend the best of luck.

The bus arrived and they got on then made their way to the back to take their seats.

"Kalyani, I bet you're going to attend Vikrant's party on Saturday right?" A girl who had too much make up on asked Kaly.

"Yes. Why?"

"I just figured you wouldn't want your boyfriend to go alone." The girl said.

"I'm not like those girls who like to watch their boyfriend's every move, Tallulah. I trust my boyfriend one hundred percent." Kaly informed her.

"That's good to hear." Tallulah forced a smile and looked away.

"Wait, that's her name?" Sarita whispered.

"Yes. Why?"

"She looks exactly like that monkey in Barbie as the Island princess." Sarita answered.

Kaly burst out laughing, causing the other students to stare at her as if she'd gone mad but they immediately lost interest and minded their own business.

"You're so mean." Kaly chuckled. It was far from being true but who said they couldn't have fun criticizing the likes of Tallulah Marsden? The girl did worse to students who she felt were below her.