Absolutely! Here's a refined versio
---
Ravi's room was cozy, the soft fairy lights casting a gentle glow across the walls. Niki slipped under the blanket, staring at the ceiling while Ravi settled into her bed beside her. The night was quiet, save for the occasional chirp of crickets outside the window.
Ravi yawned, turning towards Niki. "You know… it feels nice, talking like this again."
Niki smiled softly. "Yeah. It does."
They lay there for a moment, the silence stretching comfortably between them. Then Ravi spoke again.
"Hey… you remember that guy you had a huge crush on back in school?" Ravi's tone was playful, but Niki immediately tensed.
"W-What?" Niki stammered, turning to face her.
"You know… the handsome one from the basketball team." Ravi grinned. "Guess what? He moved into my colony."
Niki blinked. "What?"
"Yeah! What was his name again?" Ravi furrowed her brow, tapping her chin. "I think it was… Aarav?"
Niki's breath caught in her throat.
Oh shit.
Her mind spun, and suddenly, she was back in school.
---
Flashback:
The school basketball court buzzed with energy. Boys shouted, girls giggled, and the crowd pulsed with excitement. Niki stood amidst it all, eyes scanning the court, searching for one particular face.
She tiptoed, craning her neck to see over the heads in front of her, but the sea of students blocked her view. Frustrated, she turned to two junior girls sitting on a bench.
"Can you make some space?" Niki asked politely.
They glanced at her, then shifted slightly. Niki quickly climbed onto the bench, her heart thudding as her gaze swept the court.
The game was intense. Sneakers squeaked against the polished floor, and the ball bounced rhythmically. Then she saw him — Aarav.
He sprinted across the court, his white t-shirt clinging to his body, sweat glistening on his forehead. The crowd roared as he charged forward, leaped, and shot the ball clean through the hoop. The stadium erupted.
"Aarav! Aarav!"
Niki's breath hitched. The noise faded into the background, and all she could see was him — the way his muscles tensed as he moved, the focused determination in his eyes, the easy smirk as he high-fived his teammates. He pushed his hair back, and for a moment, time slowed.
"Uff… so handsome," Niki whispered, though no one could hear her.
She glanced around. Other girls whispered excitedly.
"Look at that! Aarav scored again!"
"He's so cool, right?"
"I wish I could talk to him…"
Niki smoothed her slightly crumpled uniform, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. But as she watched the confident girls giggling and chatting, something tightened inside her. She stepped down from the bench quietly, slipping away from the crowd.
Just then, her friends appeared.
"Hey, what are you doing here?" one of them asked. "What's the score?"
Niki forced a smile, rattling off the score, but her mind stayed on Aarav.
---
Niki's eyes fluttered open. Her heart still raced. She turned towards Ravi, who was half-asleep.
"You know," Niki began softly, "I completely forgot about him. I just remembered where I'd seen him before."
Ravi mumbled sleepily, "Where?"
Niki chuckled. "That day… I puked on Aarav's car."
Ravi's eyes shot open. "What?!"
Niki buried her face in the pillow. "Now it makes sense… I knew I'd seen him somewhere."
Ravi burst out laughing. The room settled back into silence, but sleep remained distant. Niki stared at the ceiling, her mind drifting to the past once again.
The Morning Encounter
It was five in the morning. The colony was enveloped in deep silence, with only the occasional bark of a distant dog breaking the stillness. The sky showed faint hints of light, but darkness hadn't fully retreated yet.
Niki and Raavi stepped out of the house. The cold air gently stung their faces. Raavi pulled out her scooty keys, and the two made their way toward the parking lot. In the dim light of the parking lamps, everything seemed a bit hazy.
As they reached the scooty, Niki rubbed her arms to fight the cold. Raavi unlocked the scooty, and just then, Niki noticed a shadow moving in the corner of the parking lot. She squinted to see clearly — it was Aarav.
Aarav was exercising in the parking lot. His breaths formed white puffs of vapor in the cold air. His T-shirt clung to his sweat-drenched body, and his hair was slightly damp. He was completely engrossed in his workout.
Niki's eyes locked onto him. Every time he lowered himself for a push-up, his arm muscles flexed. In the faint light, the sweat glistened on his face.
"What's he doing here?" Raavi whispered.
Aarav glanced in their direction and slowly walked toward them.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Raavi asked, raising her eyebrows.
Aarav pulled out his earbuds and smiled faintly. "Morning exercise." Then his gaze shifted to Niki, who stood silently, staring at him.
He leaned slightly forward, as if about to share a secret, and with a playful smirk, he said, "By the way, Niki, I was right… you should exercise too."
Niki blinked, confused. "What?"
Aarav smirked. "To learn some self-control… and drink less."
Niki's eyes widened. "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Aarav shrugged with a light chuckle. "Just joking," he said, wiping his face with a towel before jogging off again.
Niki stood frozen, flustered and annoyed, while Raavi struggled to hold back her laughter.
"What… what was that?" Niki whispered.
Raavi grinned. "Looks like he remembers your puking incident!"
Niki's face turned red with embarrassment and frustration. "Haha, very funny!" Then suddenly, a memory struck her. She nudged Raavi and said, "By the way, last night, your brother made me hold his cigarette and booze again!"
Raavi turned to her, shocked. "What?"
Niki let out a sigh. "Yeah! And Aarav saw me right then."
Raavi's mouth fell open. "Wait… Aarav saw you?"
"Yeah… no idea what he must have thought," Niki replied, shaking her head.
Raavi was silent for a moment before she smirked, "Oh! So that's why he just threw that taunt — 'drink less!'"
Niki groaned, lightly banging her helmet against her head. "Ugh… I knew he'd say something!"
Raavi laughed, starting the scooty, and they rode off into the chilly morning air. Niki sat quietly behind her, but Aarav's words kept echoing in her head — "Drink less!"
The trees along the roadside slowly faded into the background, but Niki's heart felt like it was still stuck in that parking lot.