As the day progressed, Arjun became aware of something that extended beyond performance, something that influenced how players carried themselves within the group, a quiet confidence that came not from individual skill alone, but from familiarity with the structure of the game at this level.
He did not possess that confidence yet.
But he recognized it.
And more importantly, he understood that it could be built.
By the end of the trials, as the players gathered and names were discussed, Arjun stood among them not as someone who fully belonged, but as someone who had taken the first step toward belonging, his presence no longer defined by the lane he came from, but by the direction he had chosen to move in.
And as he walked back home that evening, the path ahead no longer felt like a distant idea—
It felt like something he had already begun to enter.