Ayaan stood frozen in the middle of the hallway like his soul had temporarily left his body.
What had happened barely lasted five seconds — maybe less — but his brain had already saved it permanently in ultra HD quality for lifelong suffering.
He could not even decide whether he was angry, shocked, embarrassed, or secretly happy. His thoughts had completely stopped functioning. The great Ayaan , known for his cold attitude and terrifying glare, was standing there buffering like weak Wi-Fi.
For nearly ten whole minutes, he stared blankly at the wall.
Then suddenly—
He walked back into the hall and punched Aditya directly in the face.
No warning. No speech. No dramatic background music.
Just BAM.
The hit was so sudden that Aditya did not even get time to protect himself. He held his cheek in disbelief.
"Have you lost your mind?!" Aditya shouted.
Ayaan grabbed his collar and raised another fist, ready to smash his face again, but Aditya immediately tried saving himself.
"Why are you acting crazy?" he argued. "It's not like she harmed you. If you're angry because she kissed you, then honestly, that's ridiculous. A guy like you must already have half the girls in school following you around anyway."
That sentence was a mistake.
Ayaan slapped him so hard that even the walls probably felt second-hand embarrassment.
"You bastard," Ayaan growled. "Disappear before I actually kill you."
Aditya rubbed his face dramatically. "You are overreacting over one girl. You should be thankful. Now you've got another side chick."
Silence.
Dangerous silence.
Ayaan's face turned red enough to compete with tomatoes in the vegetable market.
For the last few minutes, he had been controlling himself with the strength of a saint.
Now? The saint retired.
The next thing Aditya knew, Ayaan had started beating him like he personally owed him rent money. Cushions flew. A table almost died. Someone's slipper disappeared mysteriously.
Aditya finally started fighting back, and within seconds both of them were rolling across the hall looking less like rich boys and more like two unemployed wrestlers outside a tea stall.
At the exact wrong moment, Mahira — whom everyone called Momo — rushed into the house after Ayaan's urgent call about Aarshi.
She stopped at the entrance.
And blinked.
Twice.
Because before her stood two fully grown idiots fighting like stray cats over stolen chicken.
"AAYAAN!" she yelled.
Ayaan still managed to throw one more punch.
"ADITYA!"
Aditya tried attacking back.
Momo immediately grabbed Ayaan's arm like an exhausted elder sister handling violent kindergarten children.
Another punch came flying from Aditya's side.
Ayaan escaped Momo's grip for exactly one second — just enough to kick Aditya in the face one final time.
Then the fight finally stopped.
Both of them stood there breathing heavily, hair ruined, shirts wrinkled, looking like failed action heroes after a low-budget climax scene.
Momo glared at them.
"You both look like gamblers fighting over cricket bets! Have some shame! Wild animals have more manners than you two!"
Neither of them dared reply.
Thankfully, neither had serious injuries. Only their dignity had passed away.
Ignoring both idiots, Momo hurried toward Aarshi's room.
When she unlocked the door, she froze.
Aarshi was lying upside down across the bed, half her hair hanging dramatically toward the floor like a ghost from a horror movie who got tired midway through haunting people.
"Aarshi!" Momo rushed to her and lifted her properly before gently tapping her cheeks.
Aarshi slowly opened her eyes.
Her vision was still blurry.
She stared at Momo for a few seconds and whispered sleepily,
"Oh wow… angels are real. I'm literally in an angel's arms right now. Are you here to grant wishes too?"
Momo blinked in confusion.
At that exact moment, Ayaan stepped into the room.
Aarshi looked at him with half-open sleepy eyes and gasped dramatically.
"Oh my God… I'm inside a K-drama."
She pointed weakly at Ayaan.
"And this actor is so handsome… I wish I was the female lead this time…"
Both Ayaan and Momo immediately pretended they had heard absolutely nothing.
Ayaan looked at the ceiling. Momo looked at the wall.
The wall was apparently very interesting.
"Bring cold water," Momo ordered.
Ayaan silently obeyed for once in his life.
Aarshi drank the chilled water and slowly started feeling better. Afterward, Momo dragged her into the washroom and forced her to shower.
Thankfully, the shower worked better than therapy.
Soon Aarshi finally fell into deep sleep.
The room became quiet.
Too quiet.
Momo stood there staring at Ayaan with disappointment written clearly across her face.
"You really disappointed me today," she said softly. "Her brother trusted me to take care of her, and I trusted you. I never thought you would let something like this happen."
Ayaan immediately tried defending himself, but Momo stopped him.
"She was your responsibility. You cannot blame others for this."
For the first time that day, Ayaan genuinely felt guilty.
The regret in his eyes was impossible to hide.
"He trusted you enough to leave his sister here for vacation," Momo continued. "And look what happened."
Ayaan lowered his head and quietly apologized.
Later that night, he sat alone inside his room replaying every disaster from the last twenty-four hours.
The accidental kiss. The fight. Aarshi's condition. Momo's disappointment.
His brain was exhausted.
Finally, he called the only sensible person in his life — Karan.
Karan picked up instantly.
"So," Karan said casually, "are you finally free from babysitting Aarshi?"
Ayaan went silent.
Karan immediately noticed the silence.
"…What happened?"
Ayaan sighed deeply. "Too many things happened."
Karan sat up immediately. "Ah. So this is serious. Go ahead. I'm ready to listen to your love story."
"What the hell?" Ayaan snapped.
"I already know you like her."
"There is NOTHING like that."
Karan laughed. "This entire disaster is obviously about her."
They had known each other since childhood. Same boarding school. Same room. Same chaos.
Karan could identify Ayaan's mood just from the way he breathed into the phone.
Ayaan finally told him everything — from yesterday's incidents to today's catastrophe.
Karan listened carefully before speaking.
"Simple solution," he said. "Maintain boundaries. Keep an eye on her for safety, but stop getting emotionally involved. And if you actually like her, then decide later whether you want to date her or not."
Ayaan looked horrified.
"How can I date her? That's impossible. Besides, I can't stay around her all the time."
Karan replied wisely, "Exactly. So maintain distance before your brain fully collapses."
Ayaan sighed dramatically. "That's the only solution."
Karan burst out laughing.
"This is the first time in history you're seriously thinking about a girl."
"There's nothing like that," Ayaan argued immediately. "I don't even like her. I'm just used to her because she's been around for too long."
"Sure," Karan said in the tone of someone who believed absolutely nothing.
Then he casually asked, "By the way… is there any other guy interested in her besides Aditya?"
Ayaan frowned. "What nonsense? How would I know?"
"I'm just trying to understand how attractive she is."
Ayaan rolled his eyes. "She's just a childish girl who accidentally creates problems everywhere she goes."
Karan laughed softly.
"Even inside your heart?"
"Stop barking," Ayaan muttered rudely.
After a few more jokes, they ended the call.
That night, lying alone in the darkness, Ayaan finally made a decision.
He would maintain boundaries.
He would become cold again.
And most importantly—
He would absolutely, definitely, completely stop thinking about Aarshi.
Unfortunately for him…
his brain had already refused to cooperate.