Then...
I finally saw him.
Standing near one of the college buses.
For a few seconds...
everything around me became blurry.
Students were laughing.
Teachers were calling out names.
Friends were taking selfies.
Someone was playing music on a speaker.
But somehow...
none of those sounds reached me.
My eyes had already found the only person they were looking for.
He was wearing a simple black hoodie with blue jeans.
Nothing extraordinary.
Yet somehow...
he still managed to look exactly the same person my heart had been waiting to see for years.
I don't know why...
but every single time I saw him,
my heart behaved as if it had forgotten how to beat normally.
I stood there silently.
My roommate looked at me and laughed.
"What happened?"
"Why are you standing like a statue?"
I quickly came back to reality.
"Nothing..."
I replied,
trying very hard to hide the smile that had already appeared on my face.
At the same moment,
he noticed me too.
He smiled politely.
Then started walking towards us.
Every step he took somehow made me more nervous.
"Hi."
He said with the same calm smile.
"So... finally our picnic."
I smiled back.
"Yes..."
"I'm glad you came."
He laughed softly.
"You invited me.
How could I say no?"
Before I could reply,
my best friend suddenly appeared from behind and dramatically said,
"Excuse me...
Am I interrupting something?"
Both of us immediately looked towards her.
He laughed.
"You must be the famous best friend."
She folded her arms proudly.
"And you must be the person she has been talking about for years."
I almost choked.
"Hey!"
"I never said that!"
She looked at me with the most innocent face.
"Oh really?"
"I think my memory is perfectly fine."
He smiled but didn't tease me.
Instead, he simply changed the topic.
"So...
where are the others?"
Almost on cue,
As our friend group gathered near the buses, my senior walked toward us with the same calm smile he always carried.
The moment he saw him, he smiled.
"Looks like we meet again."
He smiled back.
"I was wondering if we'd run into each other on this trip."
"How have you been?" my senior asked.
"Pretty good. And you?"
"Busy as always," my senior chuckled. "Medical college doesn't really leave much free time."
"I can imagine," he replied.
For a few moments, they talked casually about college life, studies, and how unexpectedly everything had come together.
Watching them stand there...
I couldn't help but smile.
It was strange.
Two people who had entered my life in completely different ways...
were now standing in front of each other, talking as if everything was perfectly normal.
One knew every chapter of my past.
The other...
had unknowingly become the reason that past even existed.
Neither of them realized how important they were in my life.
And maybe...
it was better that way.
Soon the teachers asked everyone to board the buses.
Students immediately rushed to save window seats.
Someone shouted,
"Last seat!"
Another group started singing even before the bus started moving.
The entire atmosphere was filled with excitement.
I looked around.
Then suddenly realized something.
There was only one empty seat left.
Right beside him.
Before I could decide anything,
my best friend whispered near my ear,
"Go."
I looked at her.
"What?"
She smiled mischievously.
"I'll sit with your roommate."
Before I could stop her,
she literally pushed me forward.
I turned around helplessly.
She was already walking away while pretending she didn't know me.
I mentally promised myself that I would definitely take revenge later.
Taking a deep breath,
I walked towards the empty seat.
"Is this seat free?"
I asked.
He smiled.
"I was actually saving it."
I looked at him in surprise.
"For me?"
He nodded casually.
"I thought maybe you'd sit here."
For one second...
I forgot how to speak.
Maybe it was just kindness.
Maybe coincidence.
Or maybe...
I was simply overthinking again.
I sat beside him as the bus slowly started moving.
Outside the window,
the college gate became smaller and smaller.
A new journey had officially begun.
Students started playing games.
Some began singing old Bollywood songs.
Others were busy recording reels.
The bus slowly turned into a small celebration.
He looked outside the window.
"So...
how's MBBS treating you?"
I laughed.
"Honestly?"
"It is both beautiful and terrifying."
He smiled.
"Sounds accurate."
I told him about anatomy practicals,
late-night studying,
hostel life,
my roommate,
and how confusing medical terminology felt in the beginning.
He listened carefully.
Never interrupting.
Never pretending.
Just listening.
That was something I always appreciated about him.
He never made conversations feel forced.
After a while,
he asked,
"And your senior friend?"
"He seems like a genuinely nice person."
I smiled.
"He really is."
"He has helped me a lot."
"Especially after joining college."
He nodded.
"You are lucky."
I quietly looked outside the window.
Maybe I really was.
Because somewhere along the way,
life had given me people who cared without expecting anything in return.
My best friend.
My roommate.
That senior.
And now...
after so many years...
even him.
Hours passed.
The bus finally stopped near a beautiful hill station surrounded by greenery.
Cold wind welcomed everyone.
Students immediately rushed outside with excitement.
Someone shouted,
"Group photo!"
Another person was already running towards the viewpoint.
Teachers started giving instructions,
but almost nobody was listening.
Everyone was simply happy to be there.
I closed my eyes for a second,
taking a deep breath.
The weather.
The mountains.
The laughter.
Everything felt peaceful.
For the first time in a long while...
my heart wasn't carrying only sadness.
It was carrying hope too.
But sometimes...
the happiest moments arrive just before everything changes.
Because only a few minutes later...
Just when everything felt perfect...
someone called his name from a distance.
He turned around almost instantly.
"Oh... hey!"
A girl walked toward us with a bright smile.
For a second, I kept looking at her face.
Wait...
Why did she look so familiar?
I tried remembering.
Then suddenly it clicked.
She was from our school.
I had seen her countless times in the corridors because she was in his class. I never really knew her personally, but I remembered seeing them talking during school events.
"So you study here?" he asked her with a smile.
She nodded.
"Yeah! I'm in second year now."
They exchanged a quick handshake before laughing over something from their school days.
Watching them talk...
I realized how different their conversations were.
They shared memories.
Teachers' names.
Funny classroom incidents.
People I had only seen from a distance.
It was strange.
For years...
I had memorized every little thing about him.
Yet someone else actually had memories with him.
He suddenly looked toward me.
"Oh... let me introduce you."
He smiled.
"This is my friend."
I smiled politely.
"Hi."
She returned the smile warmly.
"So... how do you both know each other?"
Before I could answer,
he replied naturally,
"She invited me."
Then, looking at her, he added,
"I've actually visited this medical college once before."
She looked surprised.
"Really? When?"
"A few weeks ago."
"I came here for a small college tour."
I laughed softly.
"Yeah... I forced him to explore the campus."
She giggled.
"Looks like you're getting VIP treatment."
We all laughed together.
After talking for a few more minutes, one of her friends called her from another side.
"I should go."
"It was really nice meeting you."
"You too," I replied.
She waved at all of us before running back to her own friend group.
For a few seconds...
I simply watched her walking away.
Then suddenly...
someone grabbed my wrist.
I almost got scared.
"What are you doing?"
It was my best friend.
She dragged me a little away from everyone with the most dramatic expression ever.
She folded her arms.
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"I know that face."
"What face?"
"The jealous face."
I couldn't stop laughing.
"What?"
She nodded seriously.
"You were jealous."
I shook my head immediately.
"No."
"Absolutely not."
She raised one eyebrow.
"Really?"
"Really."
I smiled before answering honestly.
"That was years ago."
"My feelings have changed a lot."
"I won't lie..."
"He'll always be special to me."
"But right now..."
"He's genuinely a good friend."
"And seeing him happy honestly doesn't hurt anymore."
She stared at me for a few seconds.
Almost as if trying to decide whether I was telling the truth.
Finally...
she smiled.
"Okay."
"I believe you."
Then her smile slowly faded.
"But still..."
"If there's something inside your heart..."
"Don't keep it there forever."
"Sometimes..."
"People lose each other simply because nobody says anything."
I looked away towards the mountains.
The wind played with my hair.
At that moment...
I didn't really think much about her words.
I simply smiled.
Maybe because...
I believed there was still plenty of time.
Little did I know...
life rarely waits for anyone.
Soon everyone gathered again.
Since he barely knew anyone except us,
he naturally stayed with our group.
It didn't feel awkward anymore.
It felt...
comfortable.
We walked through beautiful pathways surrounded by tall trees.
The cold breeze made the weather even more beautiful.
Someone suggested finding a quiet place to sit.
After searching for a while,
we found a small hill overlooking the valley.
It was peaceful.
Far from the crowd.
The view looked like something straight out of a movie.
We spread a mat on the grass and sat together.
Me.
My best friend.
My senior.
And him.
For the next hour...
we forgot everything.
Assignments.
Exams.
Stress.
We simply talked.
About childhood memories.
Hostel life.
Funny professors.
Dreams.
Embarrassing moments.
At one point...
everyone laughed so hard that people passing by actually looked at us.
For the first time in years...
I wasn't thinking about whether he liked me back.
I wasn't waiting for a sign.
I wasn't imagining a future.
I was simply...
happy.
And honestly...
if someone had told the younger version of me that one day I'd be sitting beside him, laughing together under an open sky...
I would've never believed it.
Because even my dreams had never been this kind.
We bought cold drinks from a nearby stall.
Instead of sitting separately,
we all shared snacks and drinks like old friends.
The conversations never seemed to end.
I had also brought my camera.
Not just my phone...
an actual camera.
I wanted memories that wouldn't disappear with changing phones.
"Everyone together!"
my best friend shouted.
We clicked dozens of pictures.
Some smiling.
Some candid.
Some completely blurry because someone couldn't stop laughing.
Even my senior—who usually preferred staying behind the camera—joined us after everyone insisted.
Every picture somehow captured a different emotion.
Looking at the tiny screen afterward...
I couldn't stop smiling.
Maybe...
this was one of the happiest days I'd had in years.
After a while,
our bottles became empty.
"I'll go get some water," I said, standing up.
Before I could take more than two steps...
my senior stood up too.
"I'll come with you."
I looked at him.
"You don't have to."
He smiled.
"I know."
"But I wanted to."
We slowly walked toward the small water counter.
Neither of us spoke for a few moments.
The silence wasn't uncomfortable.
It was thoughtful.
Just as I picked up a bottle...
he looked at me.
His expression had suddenly become serious.
There was something in his eyes...
something I had never noticed before.
He took a slow breath.
Then quietly asked—
"Can I ask you something... and this time, I want you to answer honestly?"
The bottle in my hand almost slipped.
I looked at him.
His voice wasn't teasing anymore.
It carried a seriousness that made my heartbeat quicken.
And somehow...
I already knew...
whatever he was about to ask...
was going to change something between us.