Upstairs, Sruthi remained peacefully asleep, a faint smile resting on her lips. For once, the memories returning to her weren't filled with fear, pain or loss. Her dreams had carried her back to a time when life had been simpler, when her greatest worries were college assignments, silly arguments and finding excuses to spend another few minutes with Druve.
And in that familiar classroom, the past came alive once more.
Druve was sitting at their usual desk near the back of the classroom, one shoulder resting against the wall, his notebook open before him. Most of the students had gone out during the break, leaving the room unusually quiet.
He glanced at the door when Sruthi entered.
Usually, she would have called his name before even reaching him. Sometimes she arrived complaining about a professor, sometimes laughing over something she'd witnessed in the corridor, and occasionally she came with an elaborate explanation of why he should abandon whatever he was doing and pay attention to her instead.
Today, she simply walked in, pulled out the chair beside him and sat down.
Druve watched her.
She placed her bag on the desk, took out a notebook and opened it. Then she stared at the page without reading anything.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
Druve set down his pen. "What happened?"
"Nothing, Druve. Why?"
"You've been here for five minutes without saying anything."
"Am I not allowed to be quiet?"
"You are."
"Then?"
"You're not usually this quiet."
Sruthi sighed and turned towards him.
"Druve, if someone complains about a student to the college authorities, will they inform the student's family?"
His expression grew attentive.
"That depends on what happened. Why?"
"Just tell me. Will they call home?"
"They might, if it's serious enough." He studied her face. "Sruthi, what happened?"
She hesitated before answering.
"I slapped someone."
Druve looked at her.
"You what?"
"I slapped a boy. Hard." She paused, then added firmly, "And before you say anything, I'm not sorry."
"I wasn't going to ask you to apologise."
"Good, because I won't."
Druve turned fully towards her.
"Who did you slap?"
"Varun."
"Who's Varun?"
Sruthi stared at him for a moment.
"You don't know him?"
"Should I?"
"No, I suppose not." She sighed. "He's been bothering me for the past few weeks. He's one of those fellows who thinks every girl should be impressed just because he decides to give her attention."
Druve's gaze remained on her face.
"What do you mean by bothering you?"
"He keeps trying to talk to me, stopping me whenever he gets the chance, making stupid remarks just to get a reaction. I ignored him because I thought he'd eventually get bored and leave me alone. But apparently, that only made him more determined."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Sruthi gave him a look.
"Druve, I don't report every annoying boy to you. I can handle them myself, you know."
"I know you can."
"Exactly. And it wasn't as though he was genuinely interested in me. He just couldn't stand being ignored. It became some ridiculous ego game for him."
Druve was quiet for a moment.
"What happened today?"
Sruthi sighed, leaning back in her chair.
"I was coming back from the library when Varun stopped me near the staircase. He looked furious. Before I could even ask what his problem was, he demanded to know whether I was dating you."
Druve's pen stopped moving.
Sruthi continued, looking at the notebook before her rather than at him.
"I asked him what that had to do with him. He said he'd been trying to get my attention for weeks, and all I'd done was ignore him. And now he'd found out I was dating you."
Druve set his pen down.
"I told him I'd never asked for his attention in the first place. But he just laughed and asked whether I seriously thought I could keep making a fool of him and get away with it."
Druve's gaze settled on her face.
"He said he'd been patient with me long enough. That I seemed to enjoy acting as though he didn't exist, but apparently had plenty of time for a nobody like you."
Sruthi shook her head indignantly.
"Can you believe that? I told him to watch his mouth. But he just laughed and said, 'You think you can keep brushing me off and then walk around with that loser like I'm supposed to just accept it?'"
Beside her, Druve became very still.
Sruthi didn't notice.
"I told him he had absolutely no say in whom I dated, and I wouldn't give him the time of day even if you weren't in my life."
Her voice grew sharper as the memory brought back her anger.
"But he wouldn't listen! He said I was getting too comfortable humiliating him and that I needed to remember who I was talking to."
Druve's eyes narrowed.
Sruthi continued, her attention fixed on the open notebook.
"The nerve of that fellow! I told him I wasn't afraid of him and that he could keep his threats to himself."
Druve's expression had grown cold.
He said nothing.
"Then I tried to walk past him, but he caught my right wrist and pulled me back. I told him to let go, but he wouldn't. He said he wasn't finished talking."
Druve's fingers slowly curled against his palm beneath the desk.
Sruthi was too caught up in recounting the argument to notice.
"And then he started insulting you! He said nobody knows you, nobody cares about you, and that you're some pathetic fellow who sits in a corner because you're too scared to even look people in the eye."
Druve didn't care about the insults.
He was still thinking about the hand that had closed around her wrist.
"I warned him to stop, but he just laughed. He said you have no friends, no personality, nothing. That half the college wouldn't even recognise your face."
Sruthi gave an incredulous little laugh.
"He doesn't even know you! He's barely spoken to you, yet he was standing there talking as though he knew everything about you!"
Druve watched her.
She was becoming more animated with every sentence, her earlier nervousness temporarily forgotten.
"He said you probably thought you'd achieved something because a girl like me agreed to date you. He called you a worthless nobody who should be grateful someone even bothers to acknowledge his existence."
Druve's jaw tightened.
Sruthi continued, unaware of the change.
"And all this time, he was still holding my wrist! I kept trying to pull away, but the idiot wouldn't let go."
For a moment, Druve's expression was murderous.
Had Sruthi looked at him then, she might have stopped speaking altogether.
But she was staring at the desk, still furious over the memory.
"He kept saying that you were nothing, that nobody in the college would even notice if you disappeared from their sight. He said someone like you should know your place instead of walking around as though you belonged beside me."
Her eyes flashed.
"That's when I completely lost my temper. I told him he didn't know a damn thing about you and had absolutely no right to speak about you like that."
Druve remained motionless.
"He just laughed! And when I tried pulling my wrist away again, his fingers dug in even harder. I told him he was hurting me, but he wouldn't listen."
The muscles in Druve's jaw shifted.
Sruthi continued.
"I twisted my hand as hard as I could and finally managed to pull free."
She paused.
"Then I slapped him."
Only then did she turn towards Druve.
"Hard. Right across his face."
By the time her eyes met his, Druve's expression was composed again.
"And I'm not sorry," she declared, lifting her chin. "Not even a little."
"I didn't ask you to be."
"Good!"
Her earlier indignation gradually gave way to concern as she remembered what had been troubling her since leaving the staircase.
"And now I'm worried about what that idiot might do next. What if he complains to the college? I don't want Dev getting a call and having to leave everything just because I slapped some arrogant fellow. He's already busy enough."
She sighed, turning a page in her notebook without reading it.
"And now that Varun knows we're together, he might try dragging you into it too. I don't want you getting into trouble because of me."
Druve had been listening quietly, his expression giving nothing away. The insults Varun had directed at him were the least of his concerns. What remained lodged in his mind was Sruthi telling him how she'd struggled to free herself while Varun refused to release her wrist.
He reached across and took her right hand, drawing her attention away from the notebook.
"Sruthi, look at me. Nothing is going to happen. You defended yourself against someone who wouldn't leave you alone. You have nothing to worry about, and neither does Dev."
She studied him. "You sound very sure."
"I am. Varun won't create any more trouble for you, and I'm not going to get dragged into anything either."
"But how can you be so certain?"
Druve gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "Trust me. You don't need to spend the rest of your day worrying about what he might do."
Sruthi searched his face for a moment. There was something reassuring about the calm certainty with which he spoke. Druve wasn't someone who made promises merely to comfort her, and she knew that.
"All right," she finally conceded. "But if Dev gets a call from college, I'm blaming you."
A faint smile touched Druve's lips. "Fair enough."
"And you'll be the one explaining everything to him."
"Fine."
Sruthi smiled, finally looking more like herself. "Good. Then that's settled."
Druve didn't release her right hand immediately.
As Sruthi shifted in her chair, her sleeve slipped back slightly, revealing the angry marks circling her wrist.
His gaze settled on them.
The marks were unmistakable. Deep, finger-shaped bruises stood out against her skin, with swelling around the places where Varun had gripped her.
Druve carefully adjusted his hold, supporting her wrist as he examined the marks.
Sruthi was still talking.
"Druve, I was thinking—"
She stopped when she noticed his attention fixed on her wrist.
"Oh, that. It's nothing. It'll disappear in a few days."
He didn't answer.
Instead, he gently turned her hand over to examine it properly.
That was when he noticed the swelling across her palm and fingers.
Her knuckles were reddened, the back of her hand slightly bruised, and her fingers looked noticeably swollen.
Druve's eyes moved from her wrist to her fingers.
"What happened here?"
Sruthi glanced at her hand.
"Oh, that's from slapping him."
Druve looked up.
She gave a small, unapologetic shrug.
"I told you I slapped him hard."
He looked back at her swollen fingers. He had understood that she'd struck Varun, but until now, he hadn't realised how much force she'd used.
Sruthi watched him examining her hand.
"Don't look so serious. You should have seen his face afterward."
Druve didn't smile.
Instead, he began gently massaging the uninjured areas around her right wrist with his thumb, taking care to avoid pressing directly on the bruises.
Sruthi continued talking, determinedly casual.
"Honestly, he was so shocked that he couldn't even say anything. After all that shouting, he just stood there staring at me."
Druve listened, his movements slow and careful.
He shifted his attention to her right palm, lightly rubbing the areas that weren't swollen. When his fingers approached her knuckles, he noticed the slight tightening of her fingers and immediately eased the pressure.
Sruthi kept talking as though nothing had happened.
"And I didn't wait around for him to recover either. I told him exactly what I thought of him and walked away."
Druve lifted his eyes to her face.
She was smiling now, clearly pleased with how she'd handled the confrontation.
He looked down at her hand again.
The bruises around her wrist were already darkening.
His expression remained composed, but his thoughts were anything but calm.
Sruthi had been frightened of getting him into trouble, yet she'd stood up to Varun without hesitation when he insulted Druve. She'd endured the pain of his grip, fought to free herself and struck him hard enough to injure her own hand.
And now she was sitting beside him, cheerfully recounting the incident as though those injuries were hardly worth mentioning.
Druve continued gently rubbing her right palm, careful not to aggravate the swelling.
Sruthi watched him for a moment.
"You know, you're being unusually attentive today."
He glanced at her.
"Am I?"
"Hmm. Usually, when I talk this much, you pretend to be busy with your notebook."
Druve's mouth curved slightly.
"I listen."
"Oh, really? Then tell me what I said yesterday about our assignment."
"You wanted me to finish your diagrams."
Sruthi stared at him.
Then she burst out laughing.
"You actually remember!"
"I remember everything you ask me to do."
"Then why haven't you done them?"
Druve raised an eyebrow.
Sruthi grinned.
"See? Now that my hand is injured, you have absolutely no excuse!"
He shook his head, but the faint smile remained.
She leaned closer, delighted to have found a new advantage.
"And since you're already holding my hand, you might as well agree to write the assignment too."
Druve glanced at her swollen fingers.
"Anything else?"
Sruthi pretended to consider it seriously.
"Actually, yes. I'm hungry."
Druve looked at her.
She smiled sweetly.
"And I think someone should buy me something nice to eat."
He finally laughed under his breath.
Sruthi beamed.
"There! That's the Druve I know."
She continued happily discussing what she wanted to eat, completely unaware that beneath his quiet smile, Druve's anger had not diminished in the slightest.
He simply had no intention of allowing her to see it.
Eventually, he glanced at the clock.
"I'll be back."
Sruthi looked up.
"Where are you going?"
"Washroom."
"Oh."
He stood.
"Don't try writing with that hand."
"Yes, sir!"
Druve picked up his phone.
Sruthi called after him, "And don't take too long! I haven't finished telling you what I want to eat!"
He glanced back.
She grinned.
Then he left.
---
Nearly an hour passed.
Sruthi checked the time on her phone again and frowned.
"Where on earth did he go?"
With the college culturals underway, regular classes had been suspended for the day. Most students were gathered around the auditorium and outdoor stages, leaving the academic block unusually quiet.
At first, Sruthi had occupied herself with her phone. Then she'd tried looking through her notebook, abandoned that after a few minutes and returned to watching the classroom door.
Druve still hadn't appeared.
She called him once, but he didn't answer.
"Unbelievable," she muttered, placing her phone on the desk. "He tells me not to take too long when I go anywhere, and now look at him!"
She waited another few minutes before finally losing patience.
Picking up her phone, she got to her feet and headed towards the corridor.
She had barely stepped outside when she nearly collided with someone approaching from the opposite direction.
"Hey! Watch where you're—"
She stopped.
Varun.
Her expression hardened immediately, but before she could say anything else, she noticed his right hand.
It was heavily bandaged, a rigid splint supporting his fingers and wrist. He held it close to his chest, looking nothing like the furious, arrogant boy she'd confronted earlier.
"What happened to your hand?"
Varun glanced nervously over his shoulder.
"I fell."
Sruthi frowned. "You fell?"
"Yes. I slipped and fell."
She looked at the bandage again. His hand had been perfectly fine when she'd left him near the staircase.
Before she could question him further, Varun hurriedly spoke.
"Sruthi, I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry about what happened earlier."
She stared at him.
"What?"
"I shouldn't have stopped you. I shouldn't have grabbed your hand. And I shouldn't have said those things about Druve."
His words came out in such a rush that he barely paused to breathe.
Sruthi narrowed her eyes.
"Varun, what's going on?"
"Nothing! I just came to apologise. Actually…" He swallowed, attempting a smile that looked painfully unnatural. "You know, that slap you gave me? It was a good thing."
Sruthi blinked.
"Excuse me?"
"Yes! It was exactly what I needed. It opened my eyes. Made me realise how badly I'd been behaving."
She stared at him as though he'd lost his mind.
Varun nodded hurriedly, apparently encouraged by her silence.
"I deserved it. Completely deserved it. You were right to slap me."
"Varun, are you feeling all right?"
"Yes! Perfectly fine!"
His voice cracked on the last word.
He cleared his throat.
"I mean, apart from my hand. But that's nothing. I deserved that too."
Sruthi's gaze dropped to the bandage.
"What does your hand have to do with anything?"
Varun swallowed.
"God's punishment."
She stared.
"What?"
"Yes." He nodded vigorously. "I behaved badly with you, and then I fell and broke my hand. That's not a coincidence, is it? God was punishing me for my mistakes."
Sruthi looked at him in disbelief.
"You're telling me God broke your hand?"
Varun hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Yes."
She stared at him.
He immediately began talking again.
"I mean, not directly! I fell. It was an accident. But maybe God wanted to teach me a lesson. And I've learnt it, Sruthi. I swear I've learnt it."
His uninjured hand trembled slightly as he gestured.
"I'll never bother you again. Never! I'll stay away from you. I won't speak to you unless you speak to me first. Actually, even then, I won't speak unless you want me to!"
Sruthi pressed her lips together.
What on earth was happening?
Varun glanced towards the corridor again.
"And Druve…" His voice faltered slightly. "I shouldn't have said those things about him. I was wrong. Completely wrong. He's a good person. A very good person."
Sruthi raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? You know that now?"
"Yes!"
"How?"
Varun froze.
For a moment, he looked genuinely terrified.
"I mean… obviously! You wouldn't be dating him otherwise, right?"
Sruthi studied his face.
Varun hurriedly continued.
"I was jealous. No, not jealous! I was being arrogant. Stupid. Completely stupid. I shouldn't have interfered in your life."
He swallowed hard.
"Please forgive me, Sruthi."
She glanced at his injured hand again.
"And you're sure you broke that by falling?"
"Yes!"
"Where?"
Varun's mouth opened.
Nothing came out.
"Near the…" He glanced away. "Stairs."
Sruthi tilted her head.
"The stairs?"
"Yes."
"Which stairs?"
Varun looked as though he might faint.
"I don't remember exactly."
"You don't remember where you fell and broke your hand?"
"I was in pain!"
Sruthi stared at him.
Varun immediately lowered his voice.
"Sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout."
He looked over his shoulder again.
"Please, Sruthi. I just want you to forgive me. I won't trouble you or Druve ever again."
She slowly raised her injured right hand.
"Do you see this? I kept telling you to let go, but you wouldn't listen."
Varun's eyes fell on the bruises around her wrist.
His face drained of colour.
"I know. I'm sorry. I was wrong to touch you. I promise I'll never do anything like that again."
He swallowed.
"Please. Just tell me you forgive me."
Sruthi watched him for a long moment.
The same boy who had spent weeks provoking her was now standing in front of her, practically begging for forgiveness while claiming that God had personally arranged his broken hand.
And Druve had been missing for almost an hour.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
"Fine," she said at last. "I heard your apology. Don't ever behave like that with me again. Or with any other girl."
Varun nodded frantically.
"I won't. I swear!"
"And don't insult Druve again."
"Never! Not one word!"
She studied him.
"All right. You can go."
Varun hesitated.
"So… you forgive me?"
Sruthi frowned.
"Varun, I've heard enough. Just leave me alone."
He seemed desperate to ask again, but something stopped him.
"Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Sruthi. I'm really sorry."
He hurried away, protecting his injured hand.
Sruthi watched him disappear around the corner.
For several seconds, she stood there silently.
Then she looked down the corridor in the direction she'd intended to search for Druve.
A slow smile spread across her face.
"God's punishment, huh?"
She almost laughed.
"Oh, Druve. What have you been up to?"
She turned back towards the classroom, her earlier irritation at Druve's long absence completely forgotten. Now she was rather looking forward to seeing his innocent face when he returned.
Sruthi had barely settled back into her chair when Druve appeared at the classroom door. He was carrying a small bag of food and a drink.
She looked up, then looked at the bag, and finally at him. Druve walked over and placed everything on the desk before sitting beside her. Sruthi watched him with exaggerated seriousness.
"Druve."
"Hmm?"
"I thought you went to the washroom."
"I did."
She glanced at the food. "And the washroom sells snacks now?"
Druve looked at her. "I bought them on the way back."
Sruthi pressed her lips together to hide her smile. "Of course you did."
He opened the bag and placed the food before her. She glanced inside. Her favourite snacks. Exactly the sort of things she'd been demanding before he left.
For a moment, her expression softened. Then she remembered Varun's bandaged hand and looked at Druve again.
"You were gone for quite a while."
"I know."
"Almost an hour."
Druve nodded.
Sruthi waited, but he simply opened his notebook. She stared at him.
"That's it?"
He looked up. "What?"
"No explanation?"
"I told you. I bought food."
Sruthi glanced at the bag. "Hmm. Must have been a very long queue."
Druve's mouth curved slightly.
She narrowed her eyes. "Oh, don't smile at me like that."
"Like what?"
"Like you have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about."
Druve regarded her calmly. Sruthi shook her head, trying not to laugh.
"Anyway, something very interesting happened while you were gone."
"Really?"
"Very."
He waited. Sruthi leaned towards him.
"Varun came looking for me."
Druve's expression didn't change. "What did he want?"
"He apologised."
"Good."
Sruthi stared at him. "Good?"
"Hmm."
"Druve, he was practically begging me to forgive him!"
"Did you?"
She blinked. "Well... yes. Sort of."
"Then it's settled."
He pushed the food towards her. "Eat."
Sruthi looked at him in disbelief. That's it? She had just told him that the same boy who'd grabbed her wrist and insulted him had suddenly appeared begging for forgiveness, and Druve was more interested in whether she was eating.
She leaned back, studying him.
"You know, Varun said something very interesting."
Druve glanced at her.
"He said my slap opened his eyes."
"Did it?"
"Apparently."
Sruthi picked up a snack with her left hand.
"And then he told me God punished him for his mistakes."
Druve looked at her. "Really?"
She nodded solemnly. "Apparently, God made him fall down and break his hand."
Druve said nothing. Sruthi watched his face closely. Not even a flicker. She almost laughed.
"Can you imagine? One little slap from me, and suddenly Varun has discovered morality, repentance and divine punishment."
Druve's mouth curved faintly.
Sruthi pointed at him with her snack. "There! You're smiling!"
"You're being dramatic."
"I'm being dramatic?" She widened her eyes. "Druve, the fellow practically gave me a sermon about how God punished him!"
"Maybe he learnt his lesson."
Sruthi pressed her lips together. Oh, he's good.
Druve returned his attention to his notebook. Sruthi watched him for a moment, trying to suppress her smile. The more innocent he looked, the more amusing she found the whole situation.
"You know, Druve, Varun said my slap opened his eyes. Apparently, God punished him by breaking his hand."
"Hmm."
She stared at him. "That's all you have to say?"
"What else should I say?"
Sruthi laughed. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You're such an innocent fellow, aren't you?"
Druve glanced at her, a faint smile touching his lips.
She grinned and continued eating. She had no proof of anything, and he certainly wasn't going to give her any.
When she finished, Druve gathered their things and picked up her bag.
"Come."
Sruthi stood and slipped her left hand into his, keeping her injured right hand close to her body.
As they stepped into the corridor, she looked up at him mischievously.
"Druve, next time you go to the washroom, I'm coming with you."
He stopped and turned towards her.
Sruthi burst out laughing. "I'm joking! Oh, you should see your face!"
Druve shook his head and continued walking, gently guiding her along with him.
Sruthi followed, still laughing. She didn't know what had happened during that missing hour, but she had a very strong suspicion. And judging by Druve's perfectly innocent expression, she wasn't getting an explanation anytime soon.
Sruthi was still laughing when she realised they were heading towards the parking area instead of the auditorium.
"Oh, we're leaving?" She glanced towards the building, where music and cheering could still be heard. "I thought you wanted to watch the culturals."
"Do you want to stay?"
She considered it briefly before shaking her head. "Not really. I've had enough excitement for one day." She smiled up at him. "Besides, I'd rather spend some time with you. Can we take the longer road home?"
Druve's expression softened. "I was going to suggest that."
Sruthi beamed. "Really? Then let's take the road near the lake! I love that one, especially in the afternoon."
He nodded, still smiling, and handed her the helmet.
Once they were seated, Sruthi carefully wrapped her arms around his waist, making sure not to put too much pressure on her injured right wrist.
"Good! And don't ride too fast. I want to enjoy the scenery."
"As you wish, madam."
Sruthi giggled and rested her cheek against his back. Druve glanced at her reflection in the mirror, waiting until she was comfortable before starting the bike.
The afternoon sun had softened, and a pleasant breeze greeted them as they turned onto the quieter road running beside the lake. Tall trees lined both sides, their branches stretching overhead and casting shifting patterns of sunlight across the pavement. Through the gaps in the greenery, the water shimmered beneath the clear sky.
Sruthi lifted her head occasionally to admire the view, pointing out anything that caught her attention. Druve responded with an occasional word or amused chuckle, content to listen to her cheerful chatter.
After a while, she settled against him again, her arms resting loosely around his waist. She was adjusting her embrace when her left palm pressed against something unexpectedly firm beneath his shirt.
Sruthi paused. Curious, she pressed her fingertips against it again. There was a distinct ridge beneath the fabric. She moved her fingers slightly to the side and discovered another.
"Druve!" she exclaimed, straightening behind him. "Do you have abs?"
The unexpected question made him laugh. "Yes, Sruthi."
"Really?!" Her excitement was immediate. "Oh my God! I didn't know! I mean, I know you work out, but I didn't realise you had properly defined abs!"
She pressed her fingertips against his stomach again, fascinated by the firm divisions she could feel through his shirt.
"Druve, they're so hard! And I can actually feel the separate muscles!"
He smiled at her enthusiasm. "You sound impressed."
"Of course I'm impressed! I've only seen them in pictures. I've never actually touched someone's abs before." She paused, suddenly struck by another thought. "Wait! How many do you have? Six? Eight? Don't tell me. I want to count!"
Before he could respond, her fingers began moving across his abdomen, carefully pressing each ridge as she counted.
"One… two… three…"
Druve chuckled, thoroughly entertained by her excitement. He could hear the concentration in her voice as she tried to distinguish the muscles through his shirt.
"Four… five…"
Her fingertips moved lower, following the next ridge, and his abdominal muscles tightened instinctively.
Sruthi noticed immediately.
"Oh! They just became harder!"
Druve's smile faltered slightly.
"Did they?"
"Yes! Wait, let me check!"
She pressed against the same muscle again, and it contracted beneath her fingers. Sruthi giggled delightedly, completely unaware that the repeated movement was beginning to affect him.
"Six… seven… eight!"
She gasped.
"Druve! You have eight! An actual eight-pack!"
He laughed at her excitement. "I'm glad you're happy about it."
"Happy? This is amazing!" She hugged him excitedly before returning her attention to his stomach. "But how do they feel so firm? Are they always like this?"
Her fingers moved over the divisions again, and Druve felt the first unmistakable stirrings of arousal. He drew a slow breath, surprised by how strongly the innocent movements affected him. Sruthi was pressed comfortably against his back, her voice close to his ear, and every light movement of her fingers was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
"Sweetheart," he said, his voice quieter now, "could you stop doing that for a minute?"
Sruthi lifted her head. "Why?"
"Because I'm trying to ride."
She giggled. "I'm not disturbing you! I'm just checking."
Druve shook his head with a helpless smile. Before he could explain further, Sruthi's curiosity took an entirely new direction.
"Wait! I wonder how they feel without your shirt."
His eyebrows rose.
"Sruthi—"
She slipped her left hand beneath the hem of his shirt.
Druve's breath caught sharply. The sudden contact of her warm palm against his bare skin sent a jolt through him. His abdomen contracted hard beneath her fingers, his shoulders stiffened, and for an instant he forgot whatever he'd been about to say.
Sruthi gasped in delight.
"Oh my God! Druve, they're even harder like this!"
She spread her fingers slightly, feeling the distinct muscles beneath her palm. Then she slowly traced one of the ridges, following its shape with open fascination.
Druve swallowed hard. The thin fabric of his shirt had been distracting enough. Her fingers against his bare skin were something else entirely. A rush of heat spread through him, his heartbeat quickened, and the physical response he'd been trying to ignore became suddenly, unmistakably stronger.
His grip tightened around the handlebar. He shifted on the seat, immediately regretting the movement when it made him more conscious of the uncomfortable tightness in his trousers.
Good God, Sruthi.
"Druve, I can actually feel them moving!" she exclaimed, pressing her fingertips against another ridge. "How are you doing that?"
He let out a strained breath, his eyes fixed on the road.
"Sweetheart, take your hand out."
She paused. "Why? Am I hurting you?"
"No, darling." His voice came out lower than he intended. "Just… please."
Something in his tone made her hesitate, but her fingertips remained against his stomach.
Druve glanced ahead. They were travelling along a quiet stretch beside the lake, far from the busier streets. There were no shops or houses nearby, and the road was almost deserted. A little farther ahead, he noticed a shaded clearing screened by thick greenery.
"Sruthi, keep your hand still. I'm going to stop."
He slowed the bike and guided it towards the clearing. Once the bike had come to a complete stop, he planted his foot firmly on the ground and switched off the engine.
Sruthi, still fascinated, began moving her fingertips again.
Druve immediately reached down and caught her left hand while it was still beneath his shirt.
"Sweetheart, please," he murmured, holding her fingers still against his stomach. "Not another inch."
Sruthi blinked, surprised by the urgency in his voice.
"Druve? What happened?"
He carefully guided her hand out from beneath his shirt, keeping it enclosed in his as he turned towards her. For a moment, he simply looked at her, trying to decide how to explain himself.
"Did I hurt you?" she asked, suddenly concerned. "I wasn't pressing that hard."
"No, darling. You didn't hurt me."
"Then why did you stop? You were perfectly fine before I started touching your abs."
Druve let out a helpless laugh.
Perfectly fine.
He had been anything but fine.
"Sruthi, when someone you're attracted to touches you like that, your body reacts. Your heartbeat changes, every little touch feels more intense, and sometimes those reactions happen whether you want them to or not."
Sruthi nodded thoughtfully.
"Like your stomach muscles tightening?"
"Yes, sweetheart. But that's only part of it."
She frowned. "What else?"
Druve hesitated. He wasn't embarrassed about wanting his girlfriend, but explaining his physical reaction while she looked at him with such genuine curiosity was proving unexpectedly difficult.
"Darling, you've been sitting pressed against me, running your fingers over my stomach, and then you slipped your hand beneath my shirt. Every time you touched me, I became more aware of it. And when you started tracing those muscles directly…" He paused, drawing a slow breath. "Well, my body responded rather more enthusiastically than you realised."
Sruthi blinked.
"But I was only touching your abs."
Druve looked at her for a moment before a faint, helpless smile appeared.
"Sweetheart, your fingers were on my abs, but they weren't the only part of me getting hard."
Sruthi stared at him.
"Oh…"
For a second, she remained still. Then understanding struck.
"OH!"
Her eyes widened, and the colour rushed into her cheeks.
"Oh my God, Druve!"
Before he could say anything else, she wrapped both arms around his waist and buried her burning face against his back.
Druve laughed softly, feeling her arms tighten around him. Sruthi squeezed her eyes shut.
Oh my God! I was actually doing that to him!
It wasn't that she didn't understand physical attraction. Of course she did. She simply hadn't thought about it while she was so absorbed in discovering his eight-pack. She'd been far too excited about the way his muscles tightened beneath her fingertips.
And I actually slipped my hand inside his shirt!
Her cheeks grew warmer. Then another thought slipped into her mind, entirely uninvited.
But it felt sooo good!
The memory of those firm muscles contracting beneath her palm made her smile against his back.
Especially when I touched them directly.
She immediately pressed her face deeper into his shirt, thoroughly embarrassed by her own thoughts.
Druve smiled, covering her hands with his.
"Sweetheart—"
"Don't!"
He paused. Sruthi lifted her head just enough to protest, although she refused to look at him.
"Don't, Druve. Don't open your mouth!"
A surprised laugh escaped him. "I haven't even said anything."
"And don't!" she insisted, hiding her face again.
Druve shook his head, thoroughly amused. He let her remain tucked against him for a moment, enjoying the rare sight of his usually talkative girlfriend being so completely flustered.
Then a mischievous smile appeared.
"You know, sweetheart, you can count all you want when my hands aren't busy holding the handlebar."
Sruthi's head shot up.
"DRUVE!"
She gave his shoulder a playful smack with her left hand.
"Shut up!"
Druve burst into laughter, and Sruthi immediately hid her face against his back again.
Her cheeks were still burning, but she couldn't stop smiling. And somewhere beneath all that embarrassment, a small part of her was still thinking about how wonderful those eight firm muscles had felt beneath her fingertips.