On one side, Niharika rushed toward Rushan the moment everything settled, her steps unsteady with panic. His friends helped him up carefully while blood still marked his lip and knuckles, the aftermath of the fight still heavy on his face. Niharika’s eyes were already wet, her voice breaking as she looked at him like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

“Are you crazy… look at you,” she whispered, her hands hovering near him, unsure whether to touch him or not.

Rushan exhaled slowly, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, acting like the pain didn’t matter at all.

“I’m fine.”

Sasha also stepped closer after that, her gaze falling on him for a brief moment. There was concern there, quiet and unspoken, and Rushan noticed it even in his blurred state of anger and adrenaline. Something in him softened for a second, like her presence still had that effect no matter what happened between them.

“I’m okay,” he said again, a little lower this time.

Sasha didn’t respond much, only gave a small nod, as if she understood more than she said. He took a drink from someone nearby like it was nothing, like he wasn’t just thrown into the ground minutes ago. And then, without lingering any longer, he left with Niharika and his friends, the chaos slowly dissolving behind him.

The crowd began thinning, voices fading, music still playing but no longer feeling alive. Sasha remained behind in the space that suddenly felt too big and too empty at the same time.

Dhruv stood near the side, calmly finishing the last button of his shirt, his face still carrying the weight of the fight. Sasha walked toward him immediately, her voice soft but worried as she looked at the faint blood on him.

“Are you okay, Dhruv? You’re bleeding… do you need first aid?”

Dhruv didn’t even look at it properly, his expression unreadable, controlled again like nothing had happened.

“I’m perfectly fine.”

Then his eyes shifted past her, straight toward Darika.

“Let’s go.”

Sasha quickly stepped in, her tone lighter again, trying to bring normalcy back.

“We’re having dinner together. Why don’t you both join us?”

A small pause passed before she added, almost casually, but not really,

“Rushan isn’t coming anyway.”

Dhruv exhaled once, like he had already decided everything in his mind.

“Okay. I’m hungry anyway.”

Darika immediately shook her head, stepping back slightly, her voice polite but distant.

“I already had dinner before coming… I’m not hungry. And I’m really tired. I think I should just go and rest.”

Sasha looked at her for a second longer this time, her expression softening, like she understood without needing more explanation.

“Okay… take care then.”

Then she turned toward Dhruv, her energy shifting back into something composed.

“Let’s go.”

Dhruv nodded once and started walking.

Darika moved ahead without looking back, her mind too full, her steps automatic as she tried to just leave the night behind. But Dhruv’s voice cut through the distance suddenly, firm and sharp.

“Use the lift.”

She didn’t respond, didn’t even register it fully, still lost in her thoughts.

The lift doors opened in front of her.

She stepped inside.

And only seconds later, Dhruv reached the corridor and saw her disappear behind the closing doors.

He stood there for a moment longer than necessary, silent, watching the empty space she had just left behind.

Then he turned.

And walked back toward Sasha, who was waiting.

Dinner at the long dining table felt heavier than the food placed in front of them.

Mia and a few other cousins filled the space with careless laughter, but the topic never shifted away from Darika. It was almost like she wasn’t a person sitting somewhere in the same room—just a subject they were all allowed to judge out loud, especially in front of Dhruv.

“She literally looks like a servant,” one cousin said, stirring her drink with a lazy smirk. “Seriously, what even is this choice?”

Another leaned forward slightly, glancing at Dhruv.

“What happened to you, Dhruv? You always acted so superior to Rushan… and now you’re with something he literally rejected.”

Mia tilted her head, almost amused, but her words were sharper than her tone.

“Honestly, what’s with your scandal? Your mother was the most beautiful woman in this family… and after her, it’s Sasha. I think you should’ve gone for Sasha.”

At that moment, Sasha smiled faintly.

Not loud.

Not obvious.

But there was a flicker in her eyes—something satisfied, something that made her chest feel a little lighter hearing all of it spoken out loud.

But Dhruv didn’t react.

Not even once.

He kept eating.

Slow.

Controlled.

Like nothing was being said about him.

Or her.

Until—

He suddenly pushed his chair back.

The sound cut through the table.

He stood up without a word.

No expression.

No explanation.

And walked away.

Just like that.

Leaving his plate half-finished behind him.

The entire table went quiet for a second, unsure if they had crossed a line or if this was just another one of his moods.

Sasha turned slightly, her voice low but firm.

“You shouldn’t have spoken to him like that. You know what kind of person he is.”

Mia shrugged casually.

“I was just stating facts.”

A few others exchanged looks, murmuring under their breath.

“He’s a good person… but something’s different about him lately.”

But Dhruv didn’t hear any of it anymore.

He was already upstairs.

---

The room was dim when he pushed the door open.

And the first thing he saw—

was her.

Darika stood near the window, headphones on, completely unaware of him for a moment. Outside, the mansion lights glowed softly, the party still faintly alive below. She was watching it all like she didn’t belong to any of it.

She was talking on the call.

Her voice was softer than usual.

“I’ll meet you soon… I miss you so much.”

A pause.

Then a small breath of a laugh.

“You don’t even know what’s happening here… I’m living in a mansion right now. It feels unreal. Like… the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.”

Another pause.

Her tone dropped slightly.

“I’ll explain everything when I meet you, okay?”

Silence.

A longer pause this time.

Then—

“Yeah… I know. He got a new girlfriend. He moved on so fast…”

Her fingers tightened slightly around the phone.

“Maybe I still do…”

The words lingered in the air longer than they should have.

And just as she exhaled—

she turned slightly.

Her eyes landed on him.

Dhruv.

Standing behind her.

Quiet.

Watching.

Her voice stopped instantly.

“I—” she said quickly, stepping away toward the balcony. “I’ll call you later, okay?”

Click.

The call ended.

The sound felt too loud in the silence.

---

She turned back slowly, adjusting her messy bun, trying to act normal even though her heart had already started racing.

“When did you come back?” she asked. “I didn’t know you were here… I’m sorry, was I talking too loudly?”

Dhruv took off his watch calmly, placing it on the table.

“No ma’am.”

A pause.

“It’s fine,” he added flatly. “But it’s not really fine. You were talking loudly. You should have control over your voice.”

She blinked once, then gave a small awkward nod.

“I’m sorry… but I think it’s genetic. Everyone in my family is like this. Even when we whisper, it sounds like shouting.”

Silence.

Dhruv looked at her properly now.

At her messy bun.

The loose strands falling near her cheek.

The way she stood there, unaware of how much space she occupied without trying.

And for a brief second—

something in his expression shifted.

Annoyance mixed with something he refused to name.

He pressed his fingers against his forehead.

“What’s wrong with you…” he muttered under his breath.

And she didn’t argue this time.

Just stood quietly.

That silence somehow felt safer than anything else.

Finally, he dropped his hand.

“Whatever it is… you need to stop talking like this,” he said coldly. without waiting for a response—

he turned and walked straight into the bathroom.

The door closed behind him.She sat on the couch in silence that felt heavier than the entire mansion. And then, slowly, like something finally cracked inside her, tears began to fall without permission. There was no single reason—just a pile of thoughts she had been carrying without realizing how heavy they had become.

She thought she wasn’t beautiful enough. She thought Dhruv was embarrassed by her existence. She thought everyone in that house was quietly laughing at her because she didn’t belong there. A girl from a poorer family, standing in a world made of money and perfection, trying not to look like she was lost.

And then her mind went further. She thought she would never be like Sasha. Never be like Niharika either. Not the woman he rejected, not the woman he chose—just someone in between, unnoticed and replaceable. Dhruv’s coldness kept replaying in her head, the way he spoke, the way he looked away, the way even a simple gesture like touching his forehead felt like rejection.

In her mind, even that moment twisted—he wasn’t stopping his thoughts from wanting her, he was just tired of her. That was what she believed now. That she was something to endure, not something to notice.

Her chest tightened as she tried to stop crying, wiping her face quickly like it would erase the feeling too. But it didn’t. It only made it worse. She hated how small she felt in a place that didn’t even know she existed properly. And then the thoughts turned darker—how her parents weren’t even looking for her, how she had disappeared and the world still continued normally.

The tears finally broke fully, silent but unstoppable.

And just then—the sound of the door opening snapped through the room.

Her body reacted before her mind did. She quickly pulled the blanket over herself, turning slightly, forcing her breathing to slow down, pretending to be asleep. Like if she stayed still enough, even her pain wouldn’t be noticed.

She was trying so hard to hold it in that it almost hurt more than the crying itself. Every breath felt uneven, every blink brought more tears than she could control. They kept slipping out anyway, warm and silent, like her emotions had finally stopped listening to her mind. And for a moment, she truly felt it—her life was nothing short of a quiet kind of hell.

And then, just as suddenly, something inside her began to settle.

The storm didn’t disappear, but it slowed down enough for her to think again. Slowly, painfully, she reminded herself why she was here. This wasn’t about being chosen or being enough or being compared to anyone in this house. It was never supposed to be that. She was here for one reason only.

Money.

Once she got it, everything would change. A house of her own. Education she had always dreamed of. A future she could build with her own hands. Her younger brother’s operation—done, without fear, without helpless waiting. And still, after all of that, there would be enough left. Crores in her account. Enough to finally breathe without pressure.

Her thoughts softened as she held onto that truth. This wasn’t her world. It never was. Comparing herself to girls like Sasha or Niharika was pointless, because she had never been standing on the same ground as them to begin with. They belonged to this life. She didn’t.

And Dhruv…

A quiet pause entered her mind.

He was handsome—undeniably so. The kind of person who didn’t need to try to stand out, because he already did. His presence, his silence, even his distance—it all carried something heavy, something impossible to ignore.

But he would never be hers.

Not because she wasn’t enough. But because they were two completely different worlds that had collided by accident, not destiny. And accidents were never meant to last.

That thought didn’t hurt the way it used to. It just… existed.

She accepted it, slowly, like placing something fragile down so it wouldn’t break further.

And with that acceptance, her breathing finally evened out.

The last tear slipped quietly down her cheek, unnoticed even by her own trembling hands.

And somewhere between exhaustion and peace she didn’t know she had earned, she drifted off to sleep.