The twelfth grade started with a lot of tension. The title of Main Lead was up for grabs, and the buzz was that it would be me or Dev. But I wanted no part of it; I had seen enough of the school's politics. Aditya, however, had other plans for me.

Someone created a fake online account and left awful comments on the profile of a local tough guy who was related to a girl named Nisha Kapoor. When Nisha was asked about it, she just said my name. And Aditya, like a snake in the grass, gave my phone number to that thug. One night, my phone rang. A deep, threatening voice told me to stay away from my classmates and their business or I would regret it. My heart pounded, but I gathered my courage and explained I was innocent. The call ended in silence.

When I got back to school, the whispers started again. Now, the rumor was that I was boasting that the Main Lead spot was already mine. The lie spread everywhere. When Mrs. Malhotra confronted me in front of the whole class, her words cut deep: "Stop lying, Kartik. Stop deceiving others." The crown felt poisoned, and I was bleeding without even touching it.

The storm got worse when I caught Aditya cheating in the AI room. He was reaching for exam papers. I wasn't sure what to do, so I asked some trusted friends from another class. They told me to tell Mrs. D'Souza. So I did. But instead of questioning Aditya, the teachers turned on me again. Mrs. Malhotra publicly humiliated me, saying, "You should mind your own business. Who are you to interfere?" Every time I tried to do the right thing, it turned into a weapon against me. The teachers started quietly pushing for Rohan Mehta to be the Main Lead instead. His English was weak, and his grades weren't great, but his charm with the teachers kept him in the running. Even my friends like Dev Rawat agreed that I was more deserving. But the system wasn't about who deserved it; it was about who was favored.