I was consumed with uncountable bad thoughts and got a breath of relief only when I spotted Akshay and the rest of our crewmates near the backside parking lot where Rehman parked his bike.

"You guys are okay!" I shouted excitedly.

"Keep your voice low, Bhoomi," Vibhan said.

I looked at him in confusion and soon realised that the guys had gathered in a dimly lit area with no one around. I could only see some vehicles in the parking lot and the back of a building.

"Akki, what's going on? Why have you called me here? Aren't you guys supposed to be at the finale?" I asked.

Akshay rubbed his palm over his neck and exchanged a glance with Vibhan and Rehman. The other three guys: Yasir, Shlok, and Pratik stood in silence, their faces contorted into a weird expression as if they were sharing the same thought.

"Is anyone going to tell me what the matter is?" I asked again.

"You tell her, Akki," Vibhan said.

"What the fuck? You are the captain; you do it," Akshay argued.

"Guys, please do it quickly. We don't have enough time left," Rehman said. "Anyone can come here any time."

As the guys kept shifting the responsibility of telling me 'something', I was growing impatient. I was already fucking tired, and Akki had called me so far from my home only so that I could see these jerks argue with each other.

"If you idiots only wanted to waste my time, you could have done it tomorrow," I cursed.

I started moving away from them, but Vibhan caught my wrist. He told me that they hadn't called me as a prank, and they were actually in a tight spot.

"Bhoomi, we need your help. If we don't do anything soon, we would lose the competition," Vibhan explained.

"How can I help you in that? You guys shouldn't be out here, right? What exactly is going on?" I asked as my suspicion grew.

"Look, all of the dance crews are allowed to bring a substitute or an extra dancer. The first half of the finale is already done, but our battle was halted mid-way due to some... um... 'technical reasons'... The teams received a small break due to that. Basically, we are asking you to be our extra dancer," Rehman blurted out.

"Excuse me?" I raised my eyebrows. "You want me to join the finale as your extra dancer when it is totally against the rules? How can I participate in a boys' dance-off? Just look at me. I am a girl!"

My friends stared at me, but their expressions didn't change.

Did none of the guys saw me as a girl?

I tried a different reason. "I am in my PJs. You want me to go on the stage, flop my messy hair at the judges, and seduce them to give me the trophy?"

None of the guys said anything. Akshay rubbed his temples and told Vibhan that it was a bad idea to call me after all. Yasir and Pratik also held their heads as Shlok reminded them that only ten minutes were left for them to return to the arena.

By now, I had realised that I was actually behind the building where the underground battle was going on. As my mind's gears shifted, I remembered what Akshay had told me and Arushi in the college. If our crew, Unix, had managed to reach the finals, then the team they were participating against was... Oh fuck!

"You guys are battling against the 'Emperors'? against TJ's crew?!" I asked in disbelief.

Everyone nodded.

"And you want me to go against them? Are you guys nuts?" I huffed.

Akshay patted my shoulder. "I understand that you don't want to battle with your crush, but you are our only hope, Bhoomi."

"It is not like that, Akki!" I retorted. "No matter if it is me or anyone else, we will surely lose. It is the 'Emperors' we are talking about."

Vibhan rolled his eyes and looked at me in accusation. "So you are underestimating us? You think we reached to the finals only because of luck?"

I didn't reply. I didn't understand what these guys were thinking. Calling me for assistance and keeping their hopes in me when I wasn't even qualified to participate seemed like a stupid idea.

"Bhoomi, here," Rehman said and handed me a linen bag out of the blue.

"What's this?" I asked.

"Clothes for you. You are going to dance with us, so get ready asap," Rehman ordered.

"When did you buy the clothes for her?" Vibhan asked in confusion.

Rehman grinned. "On my way to her home. None of you realised the time, but I did. I knew she would be in her PJs, so I decided to do some shopping in case."

"I still haven't agreed," I reminded.

"Why don't you just tell her the truth?" Yasir complained. "Bhoomi, there were no technical issues. Actually after seeing our performances, one of the sponsors suddenly decided to raise the prize money. In that celebration, we were asked to leave for a bit as the judges and other parties had a conversation with that sponsor."

My ears perked up. "How much was the prize money earlier then?"

"50K," Pratik answered.

50K?! That was a lot of money!

"And now it has been raised to 1 lakh," Shlok added.

My eyes must have been the shape of saucers because all of the guys nodded in sync and looked at me seriously. They were not joking.

1 lakh? Wow. If they won the finale, they would be getting a cash prize of one lakh rupees? Damn.

Should I get on the team then? Rehman has bought me unisex clothes, a hat and a mask. If I get dressed up correctly, I would totally look like a guy. But... we are pitched against none other than Tejas' crew. I think we will lose no matter what.

"Bhoomi, what are you thinking?" Vibhan asked.

"Guys, I am not sure." I shook my head.

Rehman took a deep breath and stood in front of me. He looked at me earnestly and showed me his five fingers.

"You know how many zeroes are there in one lakh, Bhoomi? Five zeroes! Not three or four, but total five. Have you ever seen that many zeroes before?" Rehman asked.

"Yes, I have," I replied.

"Where?"

"On our marksheets."

Akshay pursed his lips, and Rehman almost seemed like he would murder me for that useless joke. No matter how much I tried to convince them to drop their plan, they looked really hellbent on winning.

"This is about money, isn't it?" I said.

The guys' expressions confirmed my doubts because I was also excited about the cash prize. We knew how important even one rupee was, so getting a chance to win one lakh rupees was nothing less than a dream.

"Five minutes left," Shlok said.

What should I do? If I back out, then my friends would be participating anyways. But if I could help them, we might be able to win. Seems far-fetched but not impossible. If my crew had reached the finale, then they must be giving tough competition to the other team too.

"If we win, then all of us would be able to help our families. None of us here can say that they don't want to have enough money to keep their loved ones happy. That one lakh can change our lives," Rehman mumbled. "At least, we can try."

I gave him an understanding look. "I get it. I know it was already hard to reach here. Why are we wasting our time then? Let's go and dance."

"What if we get caught?" Yasir said.

"We will be disqualified for sure. If anything happens, I will take all responsibility," Vibhan said.

"One lakh rupees sounds better than disqualification, doesn't it?" I commented.

Every head nodded in sync. From where we came, money was something that had the power to change our whole lives. As that little voice inside me kept trying to alert me of the consequences of our plan, the faces of my mother, Dhara Didi, Srishti, and my father flashed in front of my eyes.

Sometimes, a person's financial condition can make him/her/them do irrrational things. And, I was also landing myself in the same situation. The only motivating factor I had was having my friends' trust and a hope to win.

Greed can make even a sane person imprudent. In our condition, I would replace that greed with our desperation to improve our finances.

"Now let's go and get you ready for the battle," Akshay said to me.

We moved inside the building from the back door, and I sneaked into the ladies' restroom. Within two minutes, I threw on the cargo and hoodie, and wore the mask after hiding my hair under the hat. When I went back to my friends, Vibhan sported a worried expression plus a grin.

"No one will suspect anything," Pratik said.

Each one of us knew that what we were going to do was against the rules, but when avarice takes the front seat, even the fear of getting caught doesn't work.

As the guys made sure that nothing would reveal my identity, an unknown guy arrived and scolded them that he was searching for my friends. The issue between the judges and the sponsor had been resolved, and we were expected back on the stage.

Vibhan squeezed my shoulders, and told me not to speak to anyone and to act mysterious. He said he would answer the questions asked to me, and I only needed to nod along with it.

After a small pep talk, I followed the guys and my eyes popped out when I saw the setup and the judges. Moreover, there were so many people gathered to watch us. Incredible. It was my first time attending an underground dance battle, and I was awed.

After the host apologized for the delay, he asked both teams to come on the stage. That's when I noticed the other crew, The Emperors. And as expected, my eyes were stuck to Tejas.

I didn't realise when I was pulled on to the stage and made to stand between Shlok and Yasir. Vibhan joined us after talking to the host and glanced at me.

"Focus on the battle, okay?" he requested.

Yes, Bhoomi, don't get distracted. Right now, TJ and you are rivals. You can gush over him later.

I calmed down my breathing as I reluctantly took my eyes off of Tejas and tried to blend in. When the host announced to begin the dance off and retold the prize money, I still couldn't wrap my head around the amount.

One lakh, Bhoomi. One lakh.

Suddenly I felt a nudge on my shoulder, and Pratik pointed in front of us. The battle had started, and Akshay and Vibhan were doing a duo. As planned, I followed my friends' movements, trying not to get in their way.

(👆Akshay and Vibhan's duo performance)

(👆Bhoomi's crew, Unix's routine)

As I wasn't a part of the choreography, I moved out when all of the team members danced together. I noticed the other team's dancers glancing at me but not for more than a second.

I must be doing good at cosplaying as a b-boy then.

"I shouldn't have underestimated my friends. They are really good," I mumbled to myself.

After our team, it was the Emperors' turn now. For the first time, I was going to see Tejas from that close and enjoy his performance. I grinned like a goof, happy that my smile was concealed under a mask or someone would have suspected me for being a creep.

Well, I knew TJ was a great dancer, but same could be said of his fellow mates. The one going all beast mode at the moment was Hriaan Viraje. He also went to my college, but like TJ, I hadn't talked to him either.

(👆Emperors' group performance)

Our turn came soon again, and now it was time to freestyle. I wished I wouldn't need to step in as Akshay and Vibhan were giving a tough competition already, but our rivals were no less.

The host announced that the judges were having a tough time themselves. Thus, he told us not to hold back and go all out on the stage. At that exact moment, Vibhan shot me a glance, and I understood that I was going to be sacrificed soon. These guys' skills were fatal.

(👆Rehman's freestyle)

After Rehman did his freestyle performance, Vibhan signalled the host and then turned towards me.

"Don't get scared, okay? If you get too overwhelmed, just remember that we are here and the guys opposite us are also dancers just like you. You are no less than them," Vibhan said.

"You really think so?" I asked in a choked voice.

Rehman patted my back. "You forgot what I said about you being better than me. You really don't know your own abilities, dumbass."

The host blabbered something to the judges and pointed in my direction. I prepared myself as I went forward and faced the other team.

"And guess who we have here? A new rival for the Emperors! Will Unix's new addition prove to be an ace? Let's find out," the host said loudly.

Please save me, Ganapati Bappa.

"Give a round of applause for Boomer!" The host announced.

Boomer?! That's my stage name? What the fuck?

I snapped my head at Akshay, who gave me his puppy eyes.

This idiot couldn't come up with a better name? What's Boomer? It fucking sucks. I hate it!

I swear I heard the audience laugh, but I controlled myself from punching my best friend. I wanted to dig a hole for myself.

The host finished the introductions, and motioned for the DJ to start the music. When the first beat dropped, my eyes traveled directly to Tejas. I was standing in front of my idol, my inspiration.

Oh my duckety duck...

I wished to dance with TJ one day, not stand against him.