CHAPTER 1

“We got in!!"

The moment for which Arthur and Neri had been working hard since childhood, had finally arrived in the form of an acceptance letter from their dream college.  

“Dear student, it gives us immense joy to say that you have been selected…”

As soon as they saw the first line, the young hearts were filled with happiness and joy.

“Yes! We did it, Neri!” 

Arthur exclaimed, pulling her into a tight hug and Neri laughed joyfully, hugging him back just as fiercely. 

“I knew we could do it! From best friends, to soon to be college classmates!" 

Her eyes were glistening with tears of happiness as they let go of each other, clutching the acceptance letter in hand as if they were afraid to let it go 

Arthur nodded, his voice tinged with relief and excitement.

“Yes! It's going to be amazing, I can already imagine how much fun we will have in college together, all the adventures!” 

There was another reason for the happiness in Arthur's heart: he had decided, long ago, that the day he received an offer from the university, he would confess his feelings to Neri.

But now that the moment was here… he felt a flutter of nervousness in his chest. 

Fidgeting with the letter, he rehearsed quietly to himself as he walked towards the campus. 

“Neri… I have wanted to tell you this for so long. We have been best friends throughout college, and we have stuck by each other's side through thick and thin. I can’t imagine my life without you, but I… I want to be more than your friend. Will you be my girlfriend, Neri?” 

He felt his stomach twisting out of nervousness as he neared the college gates. Arthur's heart was racing, just thinking of Neri’s smile, and her smiling eyes. This was supposed to be the perfect day…  

But what the young boy didn't know, was that for him, the day had been written with black ink… As soon as he crossed the college gates, the plans of the perfect day started to unravel.

HONK! 

Arthur jumped back at the sound of a loud honk as a black shiny car screeched to a stop, just inches away from him.

“What! Don't you have eyes, or can't you use them right?”

The mocking laughter belonged to Robin, the new transfer student who had just stepped out of the car.

Rumours and gossip about Robin had been flying for weeks now, and Arthur had heard many things about him… including that he was a troublemaker and had been expelled from three colleges by now. 

However, due to hefty donations made by his wealthy family, he was given a place at their college for this year.  

Knowing that there was no use in replying to him, Arthur ignored the laughter and comments of his other classmates and moved towards Neri instead… all he wanted was to focus on her today. 

“Hey Arthur, you okay?"

Arthur shook his head with a small smile, “Yeah, it's best to ignore such people–”

 Just then, the strong scent of an obnoxious perfume assaulted Arthur's nostrils as the transfer student barged in on their conversation. 

He was surely hard to miss. Tall, with a confident swagger and a cocky grin, Robin seemed to command attention whenever he went. 

And for some reason, he wanted to ignore everyone else's attention and focus solely on Arthur and Neri. 

He slung his arm around Neri’s shoulders, saying,

“I didn't think I would like this college, but I think I finally found a reason to catch my interest… Hello there, beautiful.”

Robin smirked although Neri felt uncomfortable, trying to shrug off his arm.

“Excuse me? I don't think I know–”

“Well, it's still not too late to know each other, right? And anyway, I don't know what a gorgeous girl like you is doing with a stuck up loser like him. How about we go out for a drink later?”

Neri glanced at Arthur, then back at Robin, a bit taken aback. 

"Um, I’m kind of busy–"  

Arthur, feeling a surge of protectiveness and jealousy, stepped in.

“Can't you see she is uncomfortable? Just back off, we don’t want to hang out with you." 

Robin's expression darkened as he looked at Arthur, like he was nothing more than a fly in his milk.

"And who are you, now? Are you her boyfriend or something?”

"No, but-”

"Then you're nothing better than a bloody lapdog! All bark and no bite, just yapping like a little chihuahua.”

Robin sneered, and Arthur's jaw tightened out of anger and embarrassment.

“You just shut up Robin, you don’t even know anything about us! So just leave–” 

The smirk on Robin's face grew even more before he withdrew his hand from Neri’s shoulders and said;

“I know enough… I know a girl like Neri here deserves better than a nerdy loser. Aren't I right?” 

As much as Robin wanted to give Arthur a fitting comeback, the man pointed at his friends who had surrounded them, encouraging him. 

There was a low chuckle that went through the crowd. A large boy with a scowl on his face, one of Robin’s friends, moved closer to him. 

“Yeah, you better watch your mouth, crawling snake,’ he snarled at Arthur, poking him in the chest. “If you don't wish to be crawling on the ground, then don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong.”

Arthur was angry and a little fearful, but didn't back down. 

“You can’t threaten me, this is a college, not your private property! And Neri, you shouldn’t talk to him either. Just stay away from her, got it!”

“Listen, little boy…”

Robin stalked towards Aurther, a dark glint in his eyes. “No one tells me what to do. Now, you got it?" 

With that, he threw a punch, hitting Arthur square in the jaw, making him stumble back.

Arthur clutched his face, mumbling;

“What…the hell…leave us alone…”

Robin laughed loudly, attracting the attention of every single person in the corridor;

"You talk to me like that again, and you'll be needing crutches to walk. Understand?"

Neri, who had been stunned into silence till  now, finally found her voice. 

"Robin… what- what are you doing? Leave him be, just go away.”

***

Although her first interaction with Robin had left Neri with annoyance, something strange started to happen over the next few days. 

Without even knowing how or when, she had started developing a sense of attraction towards Robin… it started out with an innocent curiosity towards him.

At first, she was genuinely curious about the kind of lifestyle he had… but as she started to know more about him, Neri found herself drawn to his wild side. 

He drank, smoked, and fought with a recklessness that she found oddly alluring… it was the complete opposite to the rigid and disciplined life she and Arthur had been living. 

During lunch time, the girls of their class were sitting in a circle near the back of the class, their voices hushed with excitement as they exchanged the latest gossip about Robin. 

Their eyes flickered towards him intermittently, observing every move with and cooing over his actions.

"Did you see the way he smokes?" 

"Yes, he doesn't even try to hide it, it's like he doesn't care what anyone thinks."

"And did you notice that tattoo!" Exclaimed Sarah, tracing an imaginary design on her forearm at the same place he had his. "That dragon looks so mysterious. I wonder what it means!"

"I heard he got it done at some underground parlour… who knows? Maybe there is some crazy story behind it."

Emily, another girl, came rushing in;

"Guys! Guys, did you know! There was a fight last period, in the corridor behind the gym! One of my friends saw Robin there, and she said he alone was fighting with three guys… twice his size!”

"No way! He's like a real-life action hero or something."

Neri, who had been listening quietly, couldn't help but feel amused. She had always prided herself on being level-headed and responsible, but hearing about Robin made her crave to know the world beyond the ordinary.

"He's definitely not like anyone else here! I mean, who else would dare to challenge Mr. Johnson like he did yesterday?"

"He's got guts, that's for sure, I wish I had even half the confidence he has."

As the bell rang, signalling the end of their break, the girls reluctantly dispersed, but Neri lingered for a moment longer, watching as Robin lit another cigarette.

She couldn't help but agree with the girls. 

"Yeah, he is pretty cool…" 

She said, surprising even herself with how easily the words came out.

_____

Days became weeks, and Arthur was right to be afraid of Robin's influence. Neri started becoming more and more aloof towards him, and was seen with Robin and his group of friends more often. 

She quit going to their study sessions, and the frequency of her calls to Arthur was almost negligible now. And just like that, the day of the assignment submission also arrived.

“And what is that supposed to mean? You forgot! Miss. Neri?" 

Neri, who usually prided herself on her punctuality and dedication to her studies, had completely forgotten to complete her assignment. She didn't mean to do it, she just thought that she would talk to Arthur tomorrow, and he would help her finish it… 

But she didn't even realize when the deadline had arrived.

“I'm sorry sir, I… I didn't know–”

“Neri, this is totally unacceptable. I'm very disappointed in you, you have never missed a deadline before! What is happening now?”

Mr. Thompson's disappointment quickly turned into a scolding, but Neri couldn't do anything but apologise as she hung her head in shame. 

"I'm really sorry, Mr. Thompson. It won't happen again."

After the class, Arthur approached Neri, concern etched on his face. 

"Hey, what happened to you? I was worried about your health last week, but I thought you would manage the homework. I've never seen you forget an assignment before."

Neri sighed;

"I don't know, Arthur. I just... I messed up, okay? I don't need you to lecture me about it."

Arthur frowned, she was never so short tempered. 

"Listen, Neri, I know Robin has been hanging around you a lot lately, but Neri, this isn't you. You're always so punctual. I think you need to stay away from Robin, he is a bad influence–”

Before Neri could respond, a voice interrupted them from behind. 

"Hey, why are you talking to my girlfriend, you stupid freak?"

Both Neri and Arthur turned to see Robin swaggering towards them, a smirk playing on his lips as he pulled Neri by the waist. 

Arthur's eyes widened in disbelief. 

"Wait, what? Neri, you're dating him? Tell me,this isn't true! Neri, say something–"

Neri glanced at Arthur with annoyance. "Yes! Arthir, we are dating. And you don't get to tell me what to do."

Arthur's jaw clenched. "Neri, don't do this, you're making a huge mistake."

"Stop it, Arthur! You're not my dad, so stop policing me around!”

Arthur was stunned, and Robin chuckled, draping an arm around Neri possessively. 

“Yeah, just back off! You dumb oaf, what are you, her guard dog? Or maybe a puppy chasing its tail?” 

Neri scoffed,  “Stop being a jealous puppy.” 

She said, before Robin pulled her in for a kiss, locking their lips in front of Arthur, as if to piss him off on purpose. 

Arthur’s heart sank as he watched Robin and Neri kiss passionately, but what could he say? 

Robin looked at Arthur, and smirked. “Look at her, puppy, she belongs to me now you should go get a bone to lick by yourself.” 

Arthur was left standing there to pick up the pieces of his broken heart to see the girl he had feelings for, leave with the boy who had made his life a living hell.