Vikky pov

“Careful,” he said—

His voice filled with concern.

The kind that didn’t sound forced.

The kind that came naturally.

As if—

He was used to caring for her.

“Mai theek hu,” Ashika replied,

Straightening herself.

She stood firm again—

Trying to regain control.

For a second—

It felt like that small stumble had shaken her out of whatever haze she was in.

Her flirty expression—

Gone.

Replaced with something sharper.

More familiar.

Annoyance.

But—

The smile didn’t leave.

It stayed.

Small.

Faint.

But there.

Like something she wasn’t ready to let go of.

The music around us kept blasting—

Loud.

Heavy.

Almost suffocating.

Lights flickered across faces—

Red. Blue. Purple.

People moved.

Danced.

Laughed.

But none of it reached me anymore.

Because right there—

In that small space between the three of us—

Everything had shifted.

Rishi’s hand was still on her shoulder.

Firm.

Steady.

Possessive?

Maybe.

His gaze moved from her—

To me.

And then—

It stayed there.

He wasn’t just looking.

He was observing.

Measuring.

Like he was trying to place me—

In a space where I didn’t belong.

“Ye kaun?”

He asked.

Simple words.

But not simple at all.

There was something beneath them.

A question.

A doubt.

A warning.

And the way he looked at me—

It was clear.

He saw me as something.

My jaw tightened slightly.

But I didn’t say anything.

Because—

What would I even say?

Who was I to her?

Nothing defined.

Nothing named.

Just—

Someone who stood a little too close.

Looked a little too long.

Felt a little too much.

And suddenly—

That felt like a mistake.

So I stayed silent.

Because it wasn’t my place.

Not here.

Not in front of him.

Not when she hadn’t given me one.

Besides—

I wanted to know.

How would she introduce me?

That mattered more than anything else.

More than what I thought we were.

More than what I felt.

Because in the end—

It wasn’t about me.

It was about her.

What she thought.

What she chose to say.

She could acknowledge whatever this was between us—

Or she could deny it completely.

And I—

Would have to accept it.

I looked at her.

She was already looking at me.

Directly.

Her expression—

Gave nothing away.

No hint.

No signal.

No warning.

She stayed silent for a moment.

Just long enough—

For my chest to tighten.

And then—

She spoke.

“He… he is one of my friends.”

Her voice was steady.

Then she glanced at Rishi—

Briefly—

Before turning fully towards me.

“A really special one… Vikrant.”

For a second—

I didn’t react.

I couldn’t.

Because I was already prepared—

For something else.

For distance.

For denial.

For her to say—

I was just someone she knew.

And honestly—

Even that would have been enough.

Just being acknowledged by her—

Would have been enough.

But this—

This wasn’t that.

Friend.

The word echoed somewhere inside me.

Soft.

But loud enough to reach places I didn’t even know existed.

And then—

Special.

Something shifted.

I didn’t understand it.

Not fully.

But I felt it.

A strange fullness in my chest—

Like something that had been empty—

Was suddenly… not.

It was ridiculous.

Just a few words.

That’s all it took.

But coming from her—

They didn’t feel small.

They felt—

Important.

My name—

From her lips—

It didn’t sound ordinary.

It sounded like it belonged there.

Like it was meant to be said by her.

For her to acknowledge.

And for a moment—

In that loud, chaotic place—

I felt seen.

All this time my eyes were fixed on her, but when I looked towards Rishi, I saw something I wasn’t expecting.

His frown vanished—

but not completely.

It softened.

Like the tension in his face eased the moment he saw her standing steady.

Before I could understand anything, he stepped ahead and pulled me into a tight hug—

a little too tight.

“Hello, I’m Rishi,” he said,

as if the entire college didn’t already know him.

“Hi… Vikrant,” I replied, smiling slightly as I hugged him back.

Do they really show friendship this way…

or was he just checking something?

When he pulled back, his eyes didn’t stay on me for long.

They shifted back to her—

quickly.

“So… he’s the one joining us for the Shimla trip?”

he asked.

The question caught me off guard.

Not because of what he said—

but how normal it sounded.

Like he already knew.

Like this wasn’t the first time she had mentioned me.

I looked at her.

She simply nodded.

Calm.

Unbothered.

Like there was nothing to explain.

And for some reason—

that made everything feel… real.

“Ashi… Rishi…”

We heard a faint voice from behind—

almost drowned under the blasting music.

All of us turned.

It was Aisha.

She stood near the bar counter, half-bent over a chair where Pulkit sat—

no, collapsed—

like a lifeless weight.

She was struggling to keep him upright,

one hand gripping his arm,

the other trying to steady his shoulder—

and still, she didn’t give up.

When she saw us looking,

she waved frantically—

signaling us to come.

Ashika slapped her forehead dramatically.

“Unbelievable.”

She turned to go,

Rishi following her—

but before that—

she turned back,

grabbed my hand—

and pulled me along with her.

Just like that.

Like it was her right.

And I went.

Without resisting.

Like a loyal idiot.

Why don’t I ever refuse her?

Is it because I like it?

Being guided by her?

Or is she just—

that persuasive?

By the time we reached the counter,

the situation was clearer.

Aisha was exhausted.

Her brows were furrowed,

voice sharp as she kept scolding him—

even though Pulkit clearly wasn’t listening anymore.

His arm was wrapped tightly around her waist,

his face buried against her stomach—

clinging.

“Pulkit, bas karo!”

But he didn’t move.

And then—

without warning—

Ashika stepped forward.

Her fingers twisted into his hair—

and she pulled his head back.

Hard.

Aisha was freed from his grip,

but honestly—

what Ashika did looked no less painful.

“Stop overreacting, Pulkit,” she said loudly near his ear.

He hissed,

hand flying to his scalp.

For a second I thought—

that must have hurt.

But then I saw his face.

He wasn’t that drunk.

Not gone.

Not unaware.

Just—

acting.

Seriously?

Are these people even normal?

Ashika released him with a jerk.

“Idiot,” she muttered under her breath.

Pulkit started rubbing his head,

eyes turning soft—

almost watery—

as he looked at Aisha.

Like a kicked puppy.

But Aisha didn’t react.

Not even a little.

God.

This guy would do anything for her attention.

The music kept blasting.

People kept dancing—

laughing,

shouting,

living like nothing else existed.

And in the middle of it all—

another moment unfolded.

Aditya walked up to Rishi,

a drink in his hand.

“Le bhai, aaj to tu lega.”

He offered it with a grin.

Rishi looked at the glass—

just for a second.

Almost tempted.

But before he could take it—

a hand came between them.

Ashika.

“Wo nahi piyega.”

Her voice wasn’t loud.

But it didn’t need to be.

It was steady.

Final.

Aditya frowned.

“Kyun?”

She didn’t answer immediately.

Her eyes went to Rishi’s shoulder.

“Shoulder injury hai iski,” she said simply.

“Abhi drink karega to problem badhegi.”

Then she finally looked at Aditya.

“Cold drink de de isko.”

Not a suggestion.

A decision.

For a moment—

no one argued.

Aditya nodded.

“Achha… haan… theek hai.”

And took the glass back.

Rishi didn’t say anything.

Just looked at her.

A small smile—

quiet,

understanding.

And she?

She had already moved on.

Like it didn’t matter.

But for me—

it did.

My mind went back—

to the match.

The way she had held his arm.

The way he had flinched.

At that time—

it felt…

different.

Now—

it made sense.

It was care.

Nothing else.

And yet—

something inside me didn’t settle.

Because the question wasn’t—

why she touched him.

It was—

why it bothered me so much.

The music was still loud.

Voices blending.

Lights flashing.

But my focus—

was only on her.

I looked down at my hand.

Empty.

I didn’t even realize when I had left my glass.

Probably—

when she came close.

I let out a slow breath.

Shook my head.

And then—

she came back.

I didn’t notice when she reached me.

Only when she stopped—

right in front of me.

Without a word—

she held out a glass.

Cold drink.

My eyes shifted—

from the glass—

to her face.

She wasn’t looking at me.

Not directly.

Just holding it out.

I hesitated—

then took it.

“Thanks.”

My voice came out lower than I expected.

She nodded.

Barely.

And then—

I noticed.

Her other hand.

No beer bottle.

Another glass.

Cold drink.

I stilled.

Just moments ago—

I had seen the beer.

Now—

it was gone.

Like it never existed.

And suddenly—

that moment came back.

Me—

hiding my glass.

Her—

doing the same.

A strange feeling settled inside me.

Soft.

Unfamiliar.

She didn’t say anything.

Didn’t explain.

Didn’t even look at me properly.

But she knew.

She knew what I preferred.

And without making it obvious—

she adjusted.

Just like I had.

For the first time that night—

the noise faded.

Because for a brief moment—

I didn’t feel out of place anymore.

It felt like—

somewhere,

somehow—

she had made space for me.