Chapter 4: The Mouse's Secret

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In the end, Arjun accepted my gift, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

That night, after the crowd had thinned out and the corridor was quiet except for the distant thud of a football and someone’s ringtone playing an old Lata Mangeshkar song, Arjun sat at his desk, fiddling with the new mouse.

Every time his fingers touched the mouse, I could feel it—like his touch was running over my body, not just the plastic shell. I curled up on my bed, sweat beading on my forehead despite the ceiling fan whirring on full speed, biting the corner of my blanket till my jaw hurt.

Suddenly, he spun the mouse wheel lightly. My body jerked—gripping the bedsheet with both hands, eyes squeezed shut, tongue peeking out helplessly. I shivered, barely stopping a whimper from escaping. My face burned with shame, and before I knew it, a thin line of drool had slipped from my lips, dampening the blanket.

One hand still gripped the bedsheet; the other flew up to cover my eyes, as if hiding my face would hide my secret. My body tensed, a strangled noise caught in my throat, but I forced myself to stay silent. I couldn’t let Arjun or anyone else hear me.

Both of us are computer science students—Arjun is always buried in code, looking up Stack Overflow solutions, or gaming to relax. He uses the mouse all the time. Why did I have to be so stupid?

But after an hour of this torture, I couldn’t take it anymore. My pillow was damp with tears, my body trembling, the salty taste of shame on my lips.

I don’t know how long he kept at it, but finally, he put the mouse aside. I released the blanket, collapsing like a fish out of water, eyes glazed and limbs limp.

The WhatsApp forwards didn’t let up:

[Just a little touch and you’re already gone. When it’s the real deal, you’ll be so dazed your eyes will roll back.]

[Somebody go easy on him! Look at this silly baby—even his fingers are shaking. Can’t bully him anymore, yaar.]

I rested for a bit, heart still pounding, before slowly sitting up. My whole body was drenched—shirt sticking to my back, pyjamas uncomfortably clammy. I needed a shower before anyone noticed something was off.

But as soon as I tried to get off the bed, my legs gave way. I stumbled, and for a split second thought I’d crash onto the floor, but instead, strong arms caught me mid-fall.

Arjun. His arms circled around me, steady and warm, his scent—something like mint and aftershave—filling my nose. I looked up, and for a second, I thought his ears were tinged pink.

He pressed a palm to my forehead, concern etched deep in his eyes. “Kabir, you’re burning up! Why are you sweating so much?”

I mumbled, squirming out of his grip, tugging at my shirt in panic so he wouldn’t notice anything embarrassing. “It’s nothing, Arjun. I’m just feeling a bit warm. I’ll shower, I’ll be fine.”

He hesitated, holding onto my hand. “Are you sure? You want me to help?”

Our other roommate, Vikram, piped up from his bed, grinning wickedly: “Arrey Arjun, you treat Kabir like a wife! Going to help him shower next? Oi, don’t forget our wedding invitation, haan!” Vikram popped a Parle-G into his mouth, crumbs falling on the bedsheet as he snickered.

Another chimed in: “When are you distributing mithai, bhai? We want a big box!”

Arjun shot them his trademark icy glare. “Enough, you jokers. Kabir is my best friend, that’s all.”

He turned back, ruffling my hair like always. “Ignore them, Kabir. Idiots have nothing better to do.”

I managed a tight smile, my heart twisting. Best friend, huh…

The WhatsApp forwards sighed in mock sympathy:

[What a useless fellow—already played with his ‘wife’ until he’s breathless, but still says they’re just friends. Let him regret it later!]

[He’ll learn his lesson when his ‘wife’ finds someone new.]

I tuned them out, grabbing my clothes and rushing to the bathroom, closing the door before anyone could see the disappointment on my face. The water hit my skin, washing away the sticky heat, and I counted the blue tiles to steady myself. The cool tiles beneath my feet grounded me as I turned on the shower, letting the water wash away my confusion and shame.