Vikram leaned forward, his eyes filled with curiosity, and asked, "So, what did you call us here to discuss?" The question seemed to hit Pavan like a gust of wind, shaking him out of his reverie and f him to front the very thing he'd been avoiding. His heart raced, pounding against his ribcage as if it wao escape. For a brief moment, he wao retreat, to keep it all inside. But no-there was no running away now. He inhaled deeply, steadying himself.

  Whatever happens, happens, he thought, attempting to calm the storm brewing inside him. With a quiet resolve, Pavan stood up, his face masking the iurmoil as he gazed at the sky. The evening sun was beginning its slow dest, casting a soft, golden light that bathed the world in warmth. The sky had turned into a vas e and pink hues, each stroke of color refleg off the tranquil surface of the valley below. It was the kind of beauty that could make anyone pause and fet their troubles, if only for a moment.

  Pavan, lost in the fleetiy of the moment, took another deep breath, then turo his friends with a quiet determination in his voice. "Follow me."

  Vikram, sensing the gravity of the situation, didn't ask any more questions. He stood up silently, following Pavan without hesitation. Krishna, oher hand, wasn't so quiply. "Wait, hold on!" he shouted, scrambling to his feet. "Pavan! Where are we going? And seriously, if this is about that stupid mistake earlier, I already said I'm sorry! What more do you want?" His voice was tinged with nervousness, but her Pavan nor Vikram respohey just kept walking, their steps steady and sure, as if Krishna's pints didn't even reach their ears.

  Frustrated, Krishna stumbled after them, muttering to himself, but he couldn't shake the growing unease inside him. It wasn't just the ck of answers-it was where they were headed. The cliffside. The very thought made Krishna shudder.

  Soon, they reached the cliff's edge, where the ground fell away into a vast, breathtaking panorama of the valley below. Krishna's nerves fred, his voice trembling as he asked, "Why are we here? his... uh, giant drop?" His unease was evident, but again, no answer came from the other two.

  Pavan moved closer to the edge, sitting down with his legs dangling over the precipice, staring out into the horizon. Vikram joined him quietly, both of them mesmerized by the breathtaking view below-a serene valley painted in the golden hues of suhe crystal-clear ke reflected the fading sunlight, like a vast mirror of molten gold, shimmering as if it held the secrets of the world. The green fields beyond were swayily, their patterns f a patchwork of life ay. And in the distance, an ented traihat seemingly defied the ws of nature-glided over the valley, ying down magical tracks that disappeared as quickly as they appeared. The entire se was otherworldly, like a dream suspended in time.

  Krishna, however, could not appreciate the beauty. His ay grew, as he awkwardly crouched down, trying to stay as far from the edge as possible. "Guys, I'm serious. I said I'm sorry. we please go somewhere less... fatal?"

  Vikram shot him a sharp look, silently telling him to stop. The iy of Vikram's gaze was enough to make Krishna fall silent, guilt repg his fear. He relutly sat down beside them, now pletely on edge.

  For a while, the three friends sat in silehe weight of the moment hanging over them like a dense fog. Pavan finally broke the silence, his voice soft but carrying the weight of his fession. "I'm going to Triveni Gurukul."

  The words fell like stones into a still pond, sending ripples through the quiet. Vikram and Krishna froze, stunned into silehey stared at Pavan, their disbelief evident in their wide eyes. Pavan tinued, his voice barely above a whisper, "Remember how we all took the entrance exam for Triveni? Well... I passed." His hands trembled slightly, but he pressed on, his voice faltering as he mentioned his family. "My mom... she's so proud. She wants me to go, just like my brovind. She's already made up her mind."

  For a moment, it felt as though the world had stopped. The quiet stretched on, and Pavan braced himself for the backsh-the protests, the ahe pleas for him to stay. But none came. Instead, what followed caught him pletely off guard.

  Both Vikram and Krishna, after a brief silence, suddenly broke into wide, gleeful grins. Before Pavan could process what was happening, they tackled him, pulling him down into the grass with them. "Are you serious?!" Vikram shouted, his voice filled with aement that echoed through the valley. Krishna ughed untrolbly, joining in on the pyful attack.

  Pavan's immediate rea wasn't joy-it was terror. "You idiots! We're going to fall off the cliff!" he shouted, trying tle free from their grip.

  But instead of fear, ughter filled the air. The tension that had loomed over them like a dark cloud burst, repced by the simple, childlike joy that only es with lifelong friendship. They wrestled in the grass, ughing until their sides hurt, rolling away from the cliff's edge and into safer ground.

  As they finally caught their breath, Pavan sat up, shaking his head in disbelief. "You guys are celebrating that I'm leaving? What kind of friends are you?"

  Vikram, still grinning, sat beside him and cpped a hand on his shoulder. "We're not celebrating that you're leaving, idiot. We're just excited. Yoing to do something amazing!" Krishna, wiping tears of ughter from his eyes, nodded. "Yeah, man! Besides, who knows, maybe you'll finally learn how to think like Vikram," he teased.

  The pyful banter carried on for a few moments before Vikram's tone grew more serious. "But wait-are you really not joking? You're actually going to Triveni?"

  Pavan nodded, brushing off the dirt from his clothes. "Yeah, it's real. I'm going," he said, and for the first time, he felt a sense of finality in those words. But then something struck him, and he looked at Krishna with a raised eyebrow. "Wait a minute... when you said 'me too,' did you mean you passed the entrance exam too?"

  Krishna, now defensive, crossed his arms. "I mean... I could have passed. But let's not talk about how much or how little I answered on that test!" he blurted out, clearly trying to deflect. Vikram shook his head in disbelief, smirking. "You really left the sheet bnk, didn't you?"

  Pavan's eyes widened. "Wait... we all left our answer sheets bnk? How is it possible that any of us passed?" His fusion mirrored on their faces. They sat there, dumbfounded.

  Vikram sighed. "Yeah, I don't get it either. But I got the acceptater this m. That's why I've been so nervous all day." Krishna chimed in, "Same here. My dad got a letter too. I thought maybe he pulled some strings, but now it looks like we all somehow made it."

  For a moment, Pavan sat there in stunned silerying to absorb the impossible truth. Then, slowly, a grin spread across his face. "So... we're all going to Triveni Gurukul. Together?"

  Krishna nodded enthusiastically. "Seems like it."

  The realization hit them like a bolt of lightning. Pavan jumped to his feet, ughing untrolbly. "We're all going to Triveni together!" Their ughter echoed through the valley as they embraced, celebrating the ued twist of fate that had brought them here.

  As the evening deepened into night, the three friends began their walk back to the vilge, their spirits light and their hearts filled with excitement for what y ahead. They joked and ughed, pnning their new adventure as the stars began to twinkle in the sky above them.

  Just as they he temple, something strange caught their attention. A fsh of light burst from the forest behind the mountains, illuminating the night sky. The ground trembled beh their feet, a low rumble following in the distahey stopped, looking at each other with wide eyes before turning toward the forest, their previous joy now repced with uainty.

  "What... was that?" Vikram whispered, his voice tinged with both awe and fear.

  The peaceful night had suddenly shifted, the stillness repced by a sense of foreboding. Whatever was happening, they k was only the beginning of something much rger, something that would ge everything.

  Without saying a word, they exged gnces, silently agreeing to face whatever was ing-together.

  To be tinued.........