Krishna and Aditya had been friends for as long as anyone could remember. Kindergarten, football, scraped knees, half-done homework. Aditya was the calm one. Krishna was the one who felt things deeply.
Radha came into their lives in seventh grade. She just… fit. Kind, sporty, always carrying a smile . She was good at art and quite good at cricket too. After school, she went for Bharatanatyam classes, and Krishna once saw her practicing and forgot how to speak for a minute.
That’s when it started.
He liked her almost immediately. That's when they became friends. When other girls asked him out, he said no. Radha noticed everything.
They became best friends without trying. Shared lunches. Walked together between classes. Sometimes didn’t even talk much. It was easy.
Radha liked him too. She rejected boys as well. Always with a smile.Always for him, Still, she didn’t tell him. She was scared he’d say no. Krishna was scared of losing her. So both of them stayed quiet.
Krishna once had a dream where Radha walked away from him—no anger, no goodbye. Just absence. It shook him enough to make a decision: he wouldn’t propose. Better silence than loss.
Aditya saw it before either of them admitted it to themselves.
“You’re an idiot,” Aditya said one afternoon, tying his football boots. “And so is she.”
Krishna blinked. “Excuse me?”
“You love her. She loves you. And you’re both standing still out of fear.” Aditya looked up, calm as ever. “Dreams aren’t warnings, Krish. They’re reflections of what you’re afraid of losing.”
Krishna swallowed.
“She won’t reject you,” Aditya added. “And if you don’t ask, you’ll lose her anyway. Slowly.”
So Krishna told her. Between classes. No big moment. Just honesty. He didn’t ask for an answer. He told her to take her time.
And then he waited.
The day felt longer than usual. He checked the clock too many times. Didn’t text her. Didn’t ask anyone about her. He didn’t want to pressure her.
After school, she walked up to him.
They started walking home together, like they always did. Same road. Different feeling. Krishna kept his hands in his pockets. Radha kept adjusting her bag strap.
Near the corner, she stopped.
“I thought you’d reject me,” she said quietly.
Krishna looked at her, confused. “I was scared you’d leave.”
She smiled. Not big. Just enough.
“I won’t,” she said. “I like you. I have for a long time.”
Krishna didn’t say anything. He just smiled—the kind of smile that carried relief, disbelief, and joy all at once. Gently, carefully, like she was something precious, he leaned forward and kissed her forehead.
Radha laughed softly. Her face turned red. That was her answer.
And Krishna knew—some waits were worth every second.
ns216.73.216.10da2
and then Add to home screen.