Assignment Group

Monday ki subah North Campus ke paas PG ke chhote se room me Aarav Mehta ne alarm band kiya toh pehla thought ye nahi tha ki class kaun si hai. Pehla thought tha: “Aaj group assignment ka message aayega.”

Aur jaise hi usne phone unlock kiya, WhatsApp pe exactly wahi hua.

Sana: Guys, assignment topic aa gaya hai. Kabir: Ohooo. Ritika: Let’s divide work properly this time. Sana: Haan, bilkul. Teamwork. Kabir: Main toh free hoon, jo bolna ho bol do. Aarav: Okay, cool.

Aarav ne last message type kiya, phone side me rakha, aur ek lambi saans li. “Teamwork” word uske liye itna familiar ho chuka tha jaise Delhi Metro me “please mind the gap.” Har baar same shuruat, same optimism, aur end me same scene—kaam zyada tar usi ke paas.

Woh PG ke bed par baith gaya. Room ka ek corner books se bhara hua tha, dusra corner empty chai cups se. North Campus ki subah ki thand window se andar aa rahi thi, aur Aarav ke andar ek alag hi type ki thandak thi—wo wali jo tab aati hai jab aap already jaante ho ki aapka kaam badhne wala hai, bina kisi official announcement ke.

Group me total four log the. Aarav, Sana, Kabir, aur Ritika. Ritika usually theek-thaak kaam kar leti thi, but uska style bhi “main dekh lungi” wala tha. Sana South Delhi ki polished, fast-talking student thi—hamesha busy, hamesha composed. Kabir Gurgaon se aata tha, attendance rare, jokes frequent. Aur Aarav? Aarav woh banda tha jo “haan main kar dunga” bolne me itna expert tha ki kabhi-kabhi usse khud samajh nahi aata tha ki usne help accept ki hai ya apni life ka extra shift le liya hai.

College me first lecture ke baad sab canteen ke kone wale table pe mil gaye. Sana coffee leke aayi, Kabir burger ke saath, Ritika ek packet chips share kar rahi thi, aur Aarav bas notebook khol ke baith gaya. Sana ne apni sleek ponytail ko adjust karte hue bola, “Toh dekh lo guys, topic kaafi manageable hai. Main research kar lungi, you know, sources wagera.”

Kabir ne hasi dabate hue bola, “Main presentation dekh lunga. Slides ka vibe achha hona chahiye, bas.”

Ritika ne phone uthaya. “Main intro aur conclusion likh dungi. Simple.”

Aarav ne sirf “Okay” bola.

Kyunki uske andar already ek line chal rahi thi: Research? Presentation? Intro? Conclusion? Achha. Aur actual assembling kaun karega?

Par woh bola kuch nahi. Usne bas pen se table pe ek circle banaya aur assignment ka rough structure likhna start kar diya. Jab baaki log “divide work” bolte the, Aarav ko hamesha lagta tha ki divide ka matlab unke liye “main thoda-thoda karunga, aur tum zyada zyada sambhal lena” hota hai.

Sana ne apni screen pe kuch tabs khole aur bola, “Main evening tak points bhej dungi. Internship bhi hai, but manage kar lungi.”

Kabir ne dramatic sigh diya. “Mere ghar pe aaj cousin ka function hai. But main kal tak slides ka base de dunga.”

Ritika ne seedha bol diya, “Mere paas 6 baje ke baad time hoga.”

Aarav ne bas nod kiya. Uski nazar table ke corner pe tik gayi, jahan coffee ka stain tha. Us stain ki tarah hi kuch cheezein group me permanent ho gayi thi—jaise kaam ka last-minute pressure, aur Aarav ka silent acceptance.

Shuru ke do din sab smooth chal raha tha. WhatsApp pe messages aate rahe: “Sending soon,” “Almost done,” “Will share by tonight,” “Internet issue hai.” Aarav ne pehle socha, chalo, maybe this time sach me kaam ho raha hoga. Phir teesre din usne dekha ki jo “research” Sana ne promise ki thi, woh ek half-page ka Google summary tha. Kabir ke “slides ka base” me do title fonts aur ek meme-style background tha. Ritika ne intro bheja tha, but conclusion me bas ek line thi: “In conclusion, teamwork is important.”

Aarav ne laptop khola. Uski raat ka schedule already decide ho gaya tha.

8 baje: sources collect. 9 baje: content rewrite. 10 baje: slides restructure. 11 baje: references format. 12 baje: speaker notes. 1 baje: check grammar. 2 baje: final export.

Room me fan ki awaaz aur chai ke cup ki halki khushboo ke beech Aarav ne kaam start kiya. PG ke corridor me kisi ke laughter ki awaaz aa rahi thi, koi Maggi bana raha tha, aur uske desk pe laptop ki white light uske face pe pad rahi thi. Woh type karta gaya, copy-paste se bachta gaya, sentences ko human banata gaya. Kabhi-kabhi uske haath ruk jaate the, kyunki thakaan se zyada usse jo cheez tod rahi thi, woh thi ye feeling ki uska effort invisible hai.

Aur phir raat ke 2 baje, jab usne finally last slide save ki, toh usne chair pe back rest kiya aur aankhen band kar li. Desk pe ek chai ka thanda cup pada tha. Screen pe title chamak raha tha: Assignment Group Presentation.

Aarav ko hasi aayi, par woh hasi achhi nahi thi. Woh thodi bitter thi.

Usne group chat khola.

Aarav: Guys, final draft bhej diya hai. Please ek baar dekh lo by morning. Kabir: Broooo legend. Sana: Greattt. I’ll check after my internship call. Ritika: Nice. We’re sorted then.

“We’re sorted then.”

Aarav ne message padhta hi phone ulta rakh diya. Sorted. Haan, bas ek hi banda sorted nahi tha—woh khud.

Agli subah presentation se pehle college cafeteria me sab mile. Sana fresh makeup ke saath aayi thi, Kabir ne white shirt pehen rakhi thi jaise interview ho, aur Ritika thodi nervous lag rahi thi. Aarav ne notice kiya ki koi bhi actually notes nahi padh raha tha. Sab bas uss file ke around ghoom rahe the jo usne banayi thi.

Aarav ne cup ko stir karte hue seedha bola, “Tum logon ne dekha bhi hai final version?”

Kabir ne hansi ke saath kaha, “Arre bhai, tu hai na. Tension kyu le raha hai?”

Sana ne soft smile ke saath bola, “Haan, aur tu itna achha karta hai na. We trust you.”

Trust.