Shaurya's POV

I sighed, setting my pen down.

"I should stop writing now… or else if those two idiots walk in and see me writing again, they’ll tease me to hell."

Just as the thought crossed my mind—

BANG!

The door burst open.

"Shaitaan ka naam liya, aur shaitaan haazir." (Speak of the devil, and the devil appears.)

I muttered under my breath, quickly shutting my diary as I looked up.

There they were—Veer and Ryan.

They strolled in casually and sat right in front of me, exchanging a knowing wink.

Oh no. I already knew what was coming.

Veer smirked before dramatically reciting—

"Arz kiya hai..."

"Irshad, Irshad" ryan replied.

Veer proceed with the poetry.

"Yeh masoomi bhari chaahatein bhi…"
(These innocent desires…)

"Dil pe gehre nishaan chhod jaati hain…"
(Leave deep marks on the heart…)

Ryan picked up smoothly, adding—

"Aankhon mein dhundhla sapna sajaati hain…"
(They fill the eyes with blurred dreams…)

"Bina kahe hi dastaan keh jaati hain…"
(And silently tell a story of their own…)

I rolled my eyes as they both turned to me, glaring expectantly.

This idiot Veer invented this shayari just to tease me. Every time they catch me writing, I have no choice but to say it.

I sighed and completed the verse.

"Unse bichhde…"
(Separated from them…)

They both joined in dramatically—

"Unse bichhde…"

I shook my head and added the final line, chuckling at how painfully accurate it was.

"Unse bichhde zamaane beet gaye…"
(It’s been ages since we parted…)

"Aur hum aj bhi qasam nibhaaye baithe hain."
(And yet, I still keep my promise…)

Veer clutched his chest dramatically.

"Main thode din tere saath kya nahi tha… Tune ek nayi dost nahi—nahi, dost nahi, nayi mashuka dhoond li apne liye!"
(I was away for just a few days,
And you found a new friend. No, not just a new friend—but a new lover!)

I shot him a sharp look.

"Not a lover. Just a friend." I stated firmly.

Veer scoffed, shaking his head in mock disappointment.

"Rehne de, rehne de! Sab jaanta hoon main!" (Oh, please! I know everything!)

Then, turning to Ryan, he demanded, "Bata Ryan, isne mere saath galat kiya na?" (Tell me, Ryan, he did me dirty, right?)

Ryan, ever neutral party looked at him and smirked.

"Abe, usne sirf ek dost banayi… Par tu? Tera kya? Best friend hokar, uske ghar mein ghus kar uski behen hi pata li! Uska kya?"
(Man, he just made a friend… But you? What about you? You were his best friend, but you made his sister fall in love with you! What about that?)

Veer’s smirk vanished instantly. His face turned beet red.

Busted.

"Maine pucha hi kyun… Mai hi gadha hoon jo tujhse pucha!" (Why did I even ask… I’m the fool for asking you!)

Muttering under his breath, Veer shot Ryan a murderous glare before storming out of the room.

I chuckled, shaking my head.

Ryan turned back to me, getting serious.

"The girl is fine now, right? We can’t keep her in the hospital forever."

I exhaled, rubbing my temples.

"Yes. She’ll live with us. Mom already warned me—‘That girl is coming directly to our house.’ I can’t take the risk of getting beaten up."

Ryan chuckled, amused.

"Mom doesn’t play around, huh?"

I smiled. "No, she definitely doesn’t."

___________________________________________

In hospital.

Morning sunlight filtered through the hospital blinds, dancing lightly across the room, as if trying to nudge the world awake.

“Dove… wake up,” Siya’s gentle voice broke the silence as she leaned over the bed with a fond smile.

The girl stirred, her lashes fluttering, eyes squinting at the light.

“I brought you something,” Siya said, holding up two dresses. “Whichever you like more, you can wear.”

One was a soft blue suit with tiny flowers embroidered on it, and the other—a long, white, full-sleeved frock with delicate silver threadwork along the neckline. Elegant, graceful, simple.

The girl’s fingers brushed the fabric of the white one and paused. She looked at it for a moment, then nodded ever so slightly.

Siya didn’t intrude. She placed the dress neatly on the bed and stepped away. “I’ll wait here, go inside, freshen up and change. I'm right here”

The girl nodded again.

A few minutes later, the door opened, and she stepped out slowly. The white dress floated around her like a quiet whisper. Her hair was loosely tied, her face fresh—but her eyes… still blank.

 “You’re looking beautiful, dove…” siya said softly, and meant every word.

A hesitant glance was the only response she got. But the girl didn’t pull away. That was progress.

Then, she walked to the notepad and scribbled.

"Where are we going?"

Before Siya could answer, a voice cut through the room like silk laced with command.

“Home.”

They both turned.

Shaurya stood at the door, arms folded, black kurta hugging his tall frame, eyes locked straight on her.

The girl blinked.

She frowned. “Home?” she wrote.

“Yes,” he replied coolly, walking in. “My home, you're coming with me”.

She wrote:

“And who exactly do you think you are? My savior or my stalker?”

Shaurya:(amused smirk)
"Neither. I’m the man who found you bleeding to death and decided not to walk away. So technically… hero sounds more accurate."

She rolled her eyes and scribbled again.

She wrote:
“Well, I didn’t ask for a hero. Or a bodyguard. Or a bossy man with a god complex.”

Siya tries (and fails) to hide her laugh.

Shaurya steps closer, cool and unbothered.

Shaurya:(slight smirk)
"Tough. Because now you’ve got all three."

Her pen scratches the page a little harder this time.

"I don’t stay in strangers' houses.I can take care of myself." She wrote.

He smirked, stepping closer. "You were found unconscious on a forest road. Forgive me if I don’t fully buy the ‘I got this’ act right now."

Her eyes flashing fire and scribes harder
"I didn’t ask you to save me up that night either. Yet you did."

"And I’m not sorry for it." His voice softened just a little. "Look, you’re not a project. You’re not a charity case. You’re just… someone I couldn’t walk away from."

Silence.

Siya cleared her throat from the corner. "He means you're his responsibility now."

She frowned, then wrote again.
"So I’m baggage?"

Shaurya’s voice dropped.
"No. You’re a storm. But even storms deserve shelter."

That shut her up.

Siya whispered, impressed, “Damn, bhai. That was kinda poetic.”

He knelt slightly and looked her in the eye, serious now.

“Listen. You don’t owe me trust. Or thanks. But you’re under my roof now. My mother—who, by the way, is not exactly the ‘wait patiently’ type—she’s already prepped the guest room and told me if I don't bring you home, she’ll bring a slipper to the hospital.”

He straightened up. “So, unless you want to witness Rathore household drama on Day One, I suggest you come with us.”

The girl pursed her lips and scribbled again.
“Still doesn’t make you my boss, I'm just agreeing ….. Just for your mother “.

Shaurya let out a small, genuine chuckle. “She will be pleased to hear that”.

He turned to Siya. “Let’s go.”

 She didn’t know what waited at that house. But for the first time in days, she wasn’t terrified of finding out.

__________________________________________