Author's POV:

Jhanvi reached Reeva's house and rang the doorbell.

After a few minutes, Reeva opened the door.

 The moment her eyes fell on Jhanvi's face pale, broken, trembling her smile faded.

"Jhanvi? Tu kab aayi? Chal andar aa pehle."

Jhanvi stepped inside like a storm-hit candle flame. 

No spark. Just smoke of exhaustion.

She sat down on the couch.

"Thodi der pehle aayi."

Reeva returned with a glass of water, placed it in her hand, and sat beside her, worry deepening.

"Kya baat hai? Tu itni pareshan... nahi, tooti lag rahi hai."

Jhanvi exhaled shakily, fingers tightening around the glass.

"Tune kaha tha na... ki main use pasand karti hoon?"

Reeva frowned, confused but recalling.

"Haan, Aryan ko—"

Her words were sliced mid-air.

"Karti hoon," Jhanvi whispered.

"Haan Reeva... main use pasand karti hoon."

Reeva blinked, taken aback.

"Toh isme pareshan hone wali kya baat hai?"

"Baat ye nahi hai."

Jhanvi rubbed her face like she was trying to erase someone's invisible handwriting from her 

skin.

"Jab aaj main ghar pahunchi... tab pata chala..."

Her voice cracked.

"Maa-Papa ne meri shaadi fix kar di hai."

Reeva shot up like someone dropped ice down her spine.

"W-WHAT?! Kise? Aur aise achanak?"

Jhanvi looked at her, eyes hollow.

"Dev Singhania."

"Dev sir?!" Reeva gasped again, shocked.

Jhanvi nodded.

" Pehle din se pasand nahi aaya voh insaan mujhe... aur na kabhi aayega."

Reeva gently tapped her shoulder, voice soft but hopeful.

"Tune uncle-aunty se baat ki?"

Jhanvi's lips trembled not out of fear, but disbelief.

"Keh diya maine. Bola ki main ye shaadi nahi karungi. Lekin Maa..."

She swallowed.

"Maa us insaan se meri shaadi karane ke piche padi hai. Jaise meri marzi koi maayne hi nahi rakhti."

Reeva sighed, conflicted.

"Aur Dev sir? Tune unse directly kaha?"

"Kaha," Jhanvi whispered, staring at the floor.

"Milne gayi thi usse... yahan aane se pehle. Faayda? Zero."

She shivered.

"Ulta ajeeb behave kar raha tha. Bol raha tha—ki mujhe yaad nahi ki main kiske liye bani hoon, main kisko belong karti hoon..."

Reeva froze again.

She didn't know what to reply to that.

Silence spread like spilled ink between them.

Finally, Reeva whispered,

"Toh ab? Kya socha hai?"

Jhanvi stood up slowly, like she had aged ten years in ten minutes.

"Sochna kya hai? Nahi karungi main ye shaadi. Bas."

Reeva nodded, but the next question felt heavier than the last.

"Aur... Aryan ko? Apni feelings? Kab bataayegi?"

A painful laugh escaped Jhanvi's lips, short and sharp.

"Bata doon?" She shook her head.

"Tu ne uski halat dekhi hai? Use lagta hai? Is mental state me voh ye sab samjhega kabhi? Kabhi nahi."

Reeva got up too, standing in front of her, holding her arms gently.

"Toh kya... tu use kabhi nahi bataayegi?"

Jhanvi looked away, smile small, wounded, permanent like a scar drawn by a shaky hand.

"Bata ke bhi kya faayda, Reeva?"

Her voice was barely there now.

"Agar voh kal ko theek ho bhi gaya... toh uske liye pyaar... sirf ek hi insaan rahega."

"Anjali."

"Uski biwi."

"Uski duniya."

"Aur main?"

A tear finally slipped.

"Main toh sirf ek ajnabi hoon jise voh ek trip me mila tha. Na uska kal jaanti hoon, na voh mera aaj."

Reeva shook her head, eyes shining too now.

"Aisa mat soch yaar..."

"Toh kya sochu?" Jhanvi snapped softly—anger not on her friend, but on fate itself.

"Lagta hai main... main hoon hi nahi aaj kal."

Her breath shook again.

"Meri zindagi me kya ho raha hai... mujhe khud nahi pata. Log meri kahani sunaate hain, lekin mujhe... apna chapter hi missing lagta hai."

Her voice dissolved into quiet sobs.

"Bas ek naam pata hai... jise mera dil maanta hai..."

She whispered, shaking her head like she was drowning in her own heartbeat.

"Lekin kyu maanta hai... voh bhi yaad nahi."

Reeva hugged her tightly.

And for the first time that evening, Jhanvi didn't push the comfort away.

Because sometimes the heart cries for reasons the mind hasn't learned yet.

Next Morning,

Jhanvi slept at Reeva's house, emotionally drained, curled in blankets like someone protecting a fragile secret.

Aryan's face had chased her into sleep, but questions chased her into silence.

It was 5:40 AM, the sky still bruised blue with night.

Reeva's phone vibrated on the bedside table.

Caller: Mrs. Bisht

Reeva carefully slid out of bed, making sure the call ringtone didn't wake the girl whose heart was already loud enough.

She tip-toed to the living room and answered:

"Good morning, aunty."

"Good morning, Reeva," Mrs. Bisht replied, voice calm but carrying a storm beneath.

"Tumse kuch baat karni thi."

"Ji boliye?"

"Beta, Jhanvi ki shaadi fix—"

"Mujhe pata hai, aunty." Reeva cut her off gently, not rudely, but firmly.

There was a startled pause.

"Oh..."

Then Mrs. Bisht tried again, voice turning softer, almost pleading:

"Tum uski dost ho na... toh use manaoo is shaadi ke liye.

 Ladka acha hai, powerful hai, ameer hai... Dev Singhania jaisa rishta roz thodi milta hai."

Reeva bit the inside of her cheek, frustration rising but controlled.

"Aunty... main usse mana nahi sakti."

"Kyu?" Mrs. Bisht asked, confusion sharpening again.

Reeva exhaled and said slowly, choosing truth over diplomacy:

"Kyuki shaadi paiso aur power pe nahi tikti, aunty... shaadi pyaar pe tikti hai.

aur jhanvi aryan se pyaar karti hai"

Mrs. Bisht scoffed slightly, but her voice cracked mid-reaction.

"Pyaar?... us pagal ke liye apni zindagi barbaad karne pe tuli hui hai voh?! "

"Aunty." Reeva interrupted again, this time her voice heavier.

"Main aapko ek baat seedhe seedhe bolti hoon. Dev kitna bhi acha ho duniya ki nazar me... Jhanvi use pyaar nhi karti."

Then Reeva dropped the line that changed the weight of the conversation:

Mrs. Bisht snapped again, anger masking fear

"Tum uski dost ho ya dushman? Tum use us andhere me dhakel rahi ho!"

"Nahi aunty." Reeva's tone stayed composed, but emotional now.

"Main use kisi andhere me nahi dhakel rahi. Main bas ye keh rahi hoon... ki aap uski life ke decision lene ka haq usse chinye mat"

Mrs. Bisht argued again

"Dev uske liye perfect hai!"

"Jo jaisa dikhta hai..." Reeva whispered,

"...voh vaisa hota nhi."

Reeva continued, softer, heartfelt:

"Ek salaah dungi. Use force mat kijiye. Main uski dost hoon... isliye keh rahi hoon."

Mrs. Bisht's voice trembled.

"Tumhe lagta hai ye sahi hai?"

"Mujhe kya lagta hai ise farak nhi padta..." Reeva replied, looking toward the sunrise painting 

gold lines through the window,

"...Jo jhanvi ke liye sahi hai use fark padta hai."

Mrs. Bisht inhaled shakily.

Reeva spoke her final words with the honesty only a real friend carries.

"Aap use samay dijiye. Faisla uska hai."

Reeva cut the call and turned around, only to see Jhanvi standing behind her, wrapped in sleep and softness.

"Mumma ka call tha na?" Jhanvi asked, voice small, half-awake.

Reeva nodded.

Jhanvi sighed softly, not asking further. She already knew the weight behind that call.

"Chal, so jaate hain. Abhi bahut time hai," Reeva said, pulling the blanket back.

Jhanvi nodded, climbing into silence again.

They both went back to sleep.

Author's POV — 10:00 AM

The morning sun was gentle.

 Too gentle for what was about to come.

Jhanvi and Reeva reached the café at 10 AM, unlocking the front gate, preparing for the usual aroma of coffee and calm chaos.

But chaos arrived first.

A loud tyre screech cut through the street behind them.

They turned.

Dev stepped out of the car — slow, deliberate, like he owned the air itself.

Jhanvi rolled her eyes and pushed the café gate open.

"No respect. No fear. No idea," Dev chuckled under his breath, watching her walk inside as if she was completely unaware of the empire obsessed with her existence.

He said something quietly to his bodyguard and followed her in.

Dev adjusted his coat, eyes darkening with possessive amusement:

"Mujhe meri hone wali biwi se baat karni hai... akele me."

Jhanvi snapped her head toward him, fist tightening

"Galat jagah aaye hain aap, Mr. Singhania. Yaha aapki hone wali koi biwi nahi hai."

Reeva stepped beside her, arms crossed, glare steady.

Dev smirked and looked at her

"Thoda space dogi?"

Reeva folded her hands tighter:

"Jo baat karni hai, mere saamne karo."

The bodyguard grabbed Reeva's arm to pull her out.

"Chhodo mujhe!" she protested.

"Aap humare café me aake gundagardi nahi kar sakte!" Jhanvi shouted, stepping forward to stop him.

But before she could reach—

Dev grabbed her wrist, pulled her back, pinned her against the wall, and leaned close, thumb 

grazing her cheek like a lover, eyes burning like a predator.

"Gulab..." he whispered.

Jhanvi flinched hard, trying to push him.

He caught her other hand and pinned both above her head.

"Koi faida nahi hai gulab," Dev murmured, lips almost brushing her ear,

"Tum mujhe jitna door karogi... main utna kareeb aaunga."

Tears glimmered in her eyes, but she stayed quiet.

He wiped her tears gently, but his voice stayed sharp

"Shh shhh ye ansu tumhe suit nahi karte."

Jhanvi turned her face away.

He let go, jaw tightening, frustration snapping like bone beneath pressure.

He pulled two chairs out.

Sat down like a king slouching into his throne, legs spread, drink in hand.

he gestured her to sit on other.

"Mera patience kyu test kar rahi ho gulab hmm chalo baitho....BAITHO"

Jhanvi flinched, heart pounding like a trapped bird's wings.

She sat.

He pulled her chair closer to him, leaning forward, tone dropping back to a slow lethal calm:

"Toh, hone vali Mrs.Singhania..."

"Hamari shaadi me kya theme chahiye aapko?"

Jhanvi looked up, fury rising, voice shaking but sharp:

"Shayad aapne kal ache se suna nahi tha, Mr. Singhania—"

"MAINE.AAPSE.SHAADI.NAHI.KARUNGI."

Dev chuckled, eyes tracing her lips like hunger had a GPS.

"Tum gusse me..." he smirked,

"...bohot hot lagti ho."

She raised her hand to slap him.

He caught her wrist, tugged her forward and she fell into his lap.

She tried to move.

He gripped her waist and hissed, voice low, shaking slightly for the first time not in softness, but 

in obsession barely controlled

"Move mat karo baby..."

"Warna main khud ko control nahi kar paunga."

Disgust churned in her stomach.

Tears slipped again.

"Ughh...please let me go," she whispered, voice hoarse, almost breaking.

He brushed her hair, then casually dropped the name like venom dipped in nostalgia:

"Waise... Aryan Taneja naam hai na uska? Pagal hai—"

"Pagal nahi hai woh!" Jhanvi burst out in tears, breath uneven, heart defending a man her brain couldn't remember but her soul clearly had bookmarked.

Dev paused.

Her defence hit him harder than her slap ever could.

"Theek hai..." he said, jaw twitching,

"Main use pagal nahi kahunga..."

His eyes sharpened, smile twisting into something dangerous, voice colder than snowfall at midnight

"Lekin main use maar toh sakta hoon na."

Her body froze.

"What kind of joke is this?" she whispered.

"Mazak nahi," Dev leaned closer, lips brushing her temple,

"Sach hai."

"Par... kyu? Usne toh kuch kiya hi nahi..." she asked, voice cracking.

Dev laughed softly, a hollow, cruel sound

"Kyuki uski wajah se tum mujhse shaadi nahi kar rahi."

Then leaning in fully, madness glittering in his calm

"Woh mar jaayega... toh tum mujhse shaadi kar logi na?"

Jhanvi shook her head, breath shaky, denial instant

"Nahi... main usse pyaar karti hoon."

"Oh really?" Dev whispered, smile fading, obsession spiking like a graph gone exponential,

"Toh phir dekhte hain... tumhara pyaar zinda rehta hai ya nahi."

She tried to stand.

He didn't stop her this time.

She stood up slowly, voice trembling but fierce, one last time trying to stab his illusion:

"Agar woh mar bhi gaya..." she said, hand on her chest,

"tab bhi main tumse shaadi nahi karungi. Kyuki pyaar marne se khatam nahi hota... bas insaan khatam hota hai."

Dev stared at her, eyes darkening fully, obsession turning into plan, plan turning into possession.

Jhanvi stepped back, hatred clear, voice barely a whisper now but sharp enough to bleed:

"Mujhe paane ke liye tum kisi ko maar doge?"

"Ye pyaar nhi pagalpan hai."

She turned and left the café.

Meanwhile — 

Dev stayed sitting for a moment.

Then smiled.

Not because he accepted defeat.

But because he finally found the rules of the game.

He leaned back, ring glinting in the sun, whispering to the empty room like it was a court of 

judgement.

"Gulab..."

"Voh pyaar hi kaisa jismein pagalpan na ho"