The TCS Butterfly campus looked less like an office building and more like a five-star tech resort. Glass walls, landscaped gardens, and a massive butterfly-shaped atrium made even the seniors stare.
The first-years stepped off the bus like a school picnic group. Selfies everywhere.
Kiran whistled."Bro… if heaven had HR policies, it would look like this."
Vicky barely heard him. He kept touching the Beacon in his pocket—his nervous tic.
The faculty yelled, "Stay in groups! No hero solo missions!"
They headed inside.
The lobby was huge—polished floors, giant LED walls, AC colder than Antarctica.
And then—
A small pulse.Barely a tap against the Beacon. Like it woke up for a heartbeat.
Vicky frowned.
Before he could even figure out what triggered it—
Someone brushed past him.
A girl.
She looked nothing like a Chennai intern. Fair, almost porcelain pale. Sharp, delicate Kashmiri features. Big eyes—clear, focused, intense. Short hair tied behind in a neat ponytail. Wearing a TCS intern badge.
Her presence didn't feel soft or shy—she walked like she knew exactly where she needed to be.
A small plastic card fluttered near Vicky's shoe.
Her access card.
Without thinking, he picked it up."Excuse me! Miss! You dropped—"
She stopped. Turned.
Vicky froze.
Her face was so unexpectedly striking that his brain lagged. Like she belonged in a high-budget sci-fi series, not an office lobby tour.
She walked back to him slowly."Thank you," she said, voice calm.
He extended the card.
Her fingers touched it—
And somehow, Vicky's hand tightened.
On instinct.On stupidity.On sheer brain-crash.
He didn't let go.
She blinked, confused."Um… card?"
He was still holding it.
Kiran leaned in, whisper-yelling,"DAI! Leave the card, psycho! What are you doing?!"
Vicky snapped back to reality and let go instantly."S-sorry! Sorry—my mistake!"
She took the card, gave him a quick—almost analytical—look, and continued down the corridor.
Her steps faded.
Vicky stood still for five seconds.
Kiran slapped his arm."What was that bro? You held her card like you were trying to run her biometric scan."
"Shut up," Vicky muttered, mortified.
But Kiran kept going."She looked like some high-level intern model. And you? You did catch-and-release like she's a Pokéball."
"SHUT. UP."
As they walked forward—
Vicky didn't notice the Beacon.A tiny blink.Just once.
A signal he completely missed.
Their batch moved deeper into the campus, and Vicky followed—still shaken, still embarrassed, still replaying her face in his mind.
He didn't know her.
He didn't know why the Beacon pulsed.
He didn't know why she looked familiar in a strange, unreal way.