Two days passed in a flash,
Early morning,
Akhil was on a call with his cousin, Thamizh, asking him question after question.
“Thamizh, which AI tool should I use?”
“What about the software?”
“Will they ask any questions?”
At the other end of the call, Thamizh patiently answer his questions.
After they talked for a while, Akhil hung up the phone.
He got up and walked toward the bathroom to freshen up.
After getting ready for college, he stepped out of his room.
His hair was still damp from the shower.
He used a cotton towel to dry his damp hair.
He saw his mother, his bag over his shoulder and said,
“Mom, I’m going to college.
I’ll have my breakfast after I get there.”
Rhea turned her head and frowned at him.
“Eat first.
Then go to college.”
Akhil pursed his lips and tried to convince her.
“Mom, I’m already running late.
I have to get to college.”
Rhea still refused.
As a mother, she did not want her son to miss breakfast.
Otherwise, she would constantly worry about him all day.
Akhil knew his mother well.
If he skipped breakfast, she would spend the entire day worrying about whether he had eaten or not.
That worry would keep her from eating a single bite herself.
Only after she was certain that he had eaten she would allow herself to eat.
Akhil ate his breakfast and left for college in a hurry.
At the college,
Akhil arrived at the college, only to be stopped at the gate for being late.
He gave his details to the guard, who recorded them in a ledger.
He could only smile wryly.
Even though he left in a hurry, he still couldn’t arrive on time.
He arrived at his classroom and found it empty.
He was confused.
Why is no one in the class?
He took his phone from his pant pocket and dialed the number.
“Hey, Sanjay.”
“Where are you?”
“Huh… you’re all at Anna Auditorium?”
“So, they ‘re conducting the competition there.”
“Okay, I will be there.”
He hung up the phone and placed it in his pants pocket.
He reached Anna Auditorium and saw his friends standing together.
He reached them in a few strides, placed a hand on Sanjay’s shoulder, and asked nonchalantly.
“So, when are they planning to start the competition?”
Sanjay replied anxiously.
“I think it starts in thirty minutes.”
Akhil raised an eyebrow, sensing his panic and nervousness.
“Why are you panicking like this?”
“Just chill, bro.”
Sanjay shook his head and said resentfully.
“Do you know how many good-looking girls are participating in this competition?”
“For you, it doesn’t matter.
You’re handsome bastard!”
“For us, it’s practically suicide if we mess something up.”
Akhil chuckled and watched his other two friends.
He saw his two friends staring at the girls.
He narrowed his eyes, followed Mukhi’s line of sight, and found a pretty girl with a ponytail.
He also followed Rajesh’s line of sight and found another pretty girl with a long legs.
He clicked his tongue in disdain.
He could not help but think,
“As they say friendship will stain between friends when a girl is involved.
Especially when one of his friends is in love with a girl.
See, I’ve been standing here for three minutes, and they still haven’t even noticed me.”
Suddenly, the old man stood on the dais and swept his gaze across everyone in the room.
He spoke, his voice rough and authoritative.
“Hello, students.
First of all, I thank everyone for participating in the hackathon competition.”
“The rules are simple.
We will provide a scenario for every team.
They have to create software based on the given scenario.
You have to complete the software within one hour.
“Now, each team can choose a desk.”
After each team chose a desk.
The old man continued, his voice echoing throughout the room.
“Good.
Now, teachers, give the students their questions.”
The teachers all scattered among the desks and explained the questions to the students.
Akhil and his friends received their question.
When they saw the question, they all immediately turned toward Akhil.
Akhil immediately studied the question carefully.
The question given to Akhil and his friends was written on a sheet of paper, along with the requirements.
Create a micro‑investment platform that allows users to invest spare change from everyday purchases.
He typed the questions into Claude AI and asked it to generate the code.
He then copied the code and pasted it into VS code.
He selected the “Run on live Server” option in VS code.
A browser opened and displayed the website, which functioned according to the given requirements.
Meanwhile,
Sanjay, Mukhi and Rajesh all stared at Akhil, their eyes wide with disbelief.
They couldn’t believe that Akhil, who had been lazing around with them, suddenly knew so much.
They could not even understand what he was doing.
They just stared blankly at the scene.
Akhil finished running his software, called the teacher nearby’ and showcased it.
The teacher took the ledger, noted down his marks, and strolled toward the other desks.
Akhil sighed and turned around to see his friends staring at him with bloodshot eyes.
They all stared at him with cold eyes.
They felt embarrassed for not doing anything.
When they notice that some of the good-looking girls glancing in their directions, they felt embarrassed.
But the girls weren’t looking at them.
The one they were actually looking at was, of course, Akhil, who was doing all the work by himself while they stood around like a fool.
They were not going to let this matter go.
Soon, the results of the competition were announced.
Akhil and his friends got third place.
Most of the students who participated in the competition were forced to sign up, so the results weren’t surprising.
After receiving the prize money, he split it and handed the money to his friends.
Feeling his friends’ murderous stares, he practically fled the place, knowing that staying there any longer would only put him in danger.
While strolling around the streets, he took his phone and messaged Divya.
Two days ago, they had exchanged their contact numbers.
They usually chatted whenever they were both are free.
A message from Divya popped on his screen as soon as he sent his message.