Page 57 of Reckless Dare

Neeraj’s face fell a bit, but he continued to smile. “Thank you, Ava. We hope to win. And when I score a touchdown, I will give you the winning ball.”

Ava had no idea what he was talking about. But she smiled and nodded. “Thanks, Neeraj. All the best again.”

Even as Neeraj went into the field to join his team, her eyes were drawn to the Vipers team passing by during their warm up run. At the front was the captain of the Vipers rugby team.

Her eyes fell on her tormentor, and she had to hide her gasp. He was watching her with an intensity that quivered her stomach.

What’s his problem?

Why was he always watching her? Maybe he expected her to smile. But she held his gaze in challenge and raised her chin. Her breath hitched and her stomach began fluttering even more when she saw something like a smile on his face.

Feeling embarrassed, and hoping no one saw their interaction, she looked away. She didn’t want to be associated with him in any way. There was already a soft buzz of conversation whenever she passed by with students whispering her tormentor’s name.

Shaking her head slightly, she turned to interact with the rest of the medical unity.

The game started shortly after. Ava could not believe how physically intense the game was. The players often rammed into each other and then fell into a heap while trying to grab the rugby ball.

She couldn't help but notice how the Vipers team always managed to grab the ball, especially the captain. She averted her eyes, telling herself not to look in his direction, but her eyes automatically were drawn towards him.

It was more or less a one-sided match.

She watched in dismay as the Vipers captain took the ball towards the end zone and the crowd roared with excitement. She watched him slip away from one defender after another. The crowd in the stadium then went ballistic when the Vipers scored a touchdown with their captain’s dramatic scoring drive leading them to the win.

Ava looked away. She felt bad when she saw Neeraj and his team walking back towards the stands with disappointed faces.

Ugh. I wish the Eagles had won.

She glanced at the huge screen that displayed the game and watched as the Vipers rugby team bumped their shoulders with their captain while he held the winning rugby ball up.

What a show off.

She knew it wasn’t fair and Abhiram Simha had scored the maximum points. But still, she didn’t like the idea that her tormentor always basked in the glory of some or the other win.

Suddenly there was an excited buzz. Ava was preparing with the rest of the medical unit to attend the injured players when the crowd was cheering.

Now what?

She looked up on the screen again. And she saw that the Vipers team captain was holding the ball and running somewhere. The camera was zoomed in and she could see that his lips were cut and bleeding. He spit out a spray of blood but didn’t pause in his running.

There were excited gasps from some of the girls seeing the sight of him spitting blood but continuing to run.

“That’s so hot!” a girl said from behind. “There’s something so primal about Abhiram Simha.”

There were giggles.

Ava was annoyed.

Where is he going?

She saw him nearing the stands. The next moment, she watched the screen in shock as she recognized herself on the camera standing along with the medical unit.

She looked away from the screen, only to lock her shocked eyes with her tormentor’s.

Why is he here? Why couldn’t he go to the medical unit on the Vipers side? Why is he coming to the opposing side?

There was a strange electrified hush around them probably with the crowd in the stadium wondering the same. She was prepared to tell her tormentor that the Vipers team’s medical unit was on the other side, when he came to a stop a foot away from her.

His forehead was bruised and blood was trickling down from the corner of his lips. But he twisted his mouth into a smile. “For you.”

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