Aarohi didn’t see him for three days.
Three whole days of silence. No calls. No texts. No sudden appearances in the hallway or waiting outside her class.
It felt... wrong.
She should have felt peace. Relief, even. But instead, her stomach churned every time her phone buzzed. She couldn’t sleep. Couldn’t focus.
Agastya was dangerous, but his silence was worse.
And then, on the fourth night, he came.
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She was walking back from the library alone. The sky was deep and dark, painted in inky shades of midnight. The streetlights flickered above her. Her bag was heavy with books she knew she wouldn’t read.
Her phone rang.
Agastya.
She stared at the screen, heart pounding.
She pressed decline.
Seconds later, he was in front of her.
Like he’d been waiting. Watching.
Her heart stopped.
He stepped out from behind a tree near the hostel gate. He looked tired. Wild. His eyes were rimmed red, like he hadn’t slept.
“We need to talk,” he said.
“No, we don’t,” Aarohi replied, trying to walk past him.
His arm shot out, blocking her path. He was looking straight in her eyes as if daring her to say no.
“Agastya, move.”
“You haven’t answered my calls.”
“Because I needed space. I told you that.”
“And I gave it to you. For three days. I waited, Aarohi. I waited when every part of me wanted to come find you. To see just for once. ”
She swallowed, stepping back. Fear was visible in her eyes “You can’t do this.”
He stepped forward. “Can’t do what?”
Aarohi took a step back and said in a low voice.
“Show up like this. Watch me. Scare me.”
His expression hardened. “I scare you now?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “you always scare me Agastya.”
That hit something in him. His eyes turned red. His jaw clenched. His fists curled at his sides.
“I’m not the villain, Aarohi. I’m just...” He exhaled sharply. “I’m just a guy who loves you too much.”
“Then let me go.”
“No.” That's never gonna happen. Not until I am alive, he said directly looking in her eyes as if challenging her to say otherwise.
Her breath caught.
He stepped even closer. The space between them vanished. “Be with me.”
“Agastya—”
“Say you’re mine. Be my girlfriend.”
She blinked, utterly stunned. “What?”
“I want you to be mine. Properly. No in-between. No confusion. Everyone should know that you belong to me.”
“You think you can just demand that from me?”
“I’m not asking.”
A chill ran down her spine.
“What if I say no?” she asked quietly.
His eyes darkened. “Then I’ll make sure no one else gets close to you. Ever.”
" And if someone dare to come even a cm close to you then I will make sure to turn their life into hell".
“Are you threatening me?”
“No baby, I’m making a promise. I won’t let anyone else have you.”
Her heart beat like a war drum. Loud. Violent.
She stared at him, trying to understand the boy behind those broken eyes. The boy who once was sweet.
But this wasn’t that boy.
This was someone else.
“Agastya,” she said, her voice soft but sharp, “you can’t have my heart by forcing me.”
He didn’t flinch.
He just stared.
Then he whispered, “Having you near me is more than enough.”
She didn’t know what to say.
Tears stung her eyes.
“You can’t keep me like a secret, or a prisoner.”
“I’m not. I just need to know you’re mine. I need it, Aarohi. You don’t understand what it does to me when I think about someone else touching you. forget touching, I can even bear it when someone looks at you.”
She shook her head. “You’re obsessed. That’s not love.”
“Then I’ll be obsessed. I don’t care.”
Silence stretched.
“Say it,” he whispered.
She didn’t.
“Say you’ll be mine.”
She looked up at him, tears finally slipping free.
No, I would never agree to this.
Agastya’s jaw tightened, his voice low and dangerous.
“I didn’t want it to come to this, Aarohi… but you’ve left me no choice.”
She froze.
“What do you mean?”
He took a step closer, eyes sharp like a blade.
“You know the rules. If you fail your upcoming exams, you’re out. Suspended. Gone.”
Aarohi’s breath hitched, fear gripping her chest like a vice.
“No… they can’t—”
“Oh, they can,” he cut in, a smirk tugging at his lips. “And they will.”
His voice dropped to a mocking whisper.
“You think sitting in the library all day, staring blankly at pages, will save you? That won’t help you now.”
Tears pricked her eyes. She clutched her books tighter, heart pounding.
She couldn’t afford to lose this. Her future… everything she had fought for… it would all be over.
Agastya stepped even closer, his tone suddenly softer but still dripping with control.
“Shhh… baby. Everyone in this college knows I’m a straight A+ student. I could help you pass. Easily.”
Aarohi’s eyes lit up with sudden hope.
“You’d help me? Really? Then I can actually pass?”
He smiled.
“I will. But…” He leaned in, his breath brushing her ear. “I want my tuition fees.”
She blinked. “I-I don’t have any money with me right now.”
“I don’t want your money, Aarohi.” He straightened, eyes locking with hers.
“I want you. Be my girlfriend.”
Her world tilted.
“What? No! That’s never going to happen. I would never be your girlfriend.”
He turned away without a word, walking off. But halfway down he stopped. His voice echoed back, cold and final.
“Well… in that case, say goodbye to this college.”
Aarohi’s knees weakened. She stood there, trembling, torn.
The silence pressed down on her, louder than his words.
She saw her dreams slipping through her fingers, one by one.
She shut her eyes. Took a shaky breath.
Then her voice came, barely a whisper.
“Wait.”
Agastya turned slowly, eyes gleaming.
She looked up at him, broken but determined.
“I’ll do it… I’ll be your girlfriend.”
A slow, dark smile spread across his face.
“I knew you’d make the right choice.”
“I’ll be your girlfriend.” Aarohi said while tears were slowly started to
Agastya let out a shaky breath like he’d just been pulled from deep water.
But Aarohi kept speaking.
“But don’t think that changes anything. You can force a label, Agastya. But love doesn’t grow in fear.”
He didn’t reply.
He just reached out and gently touched her face.
She flinched.
His hand froze. Slowly, he pulled back.
“I’ll make you love me,” he said softly. “Even if it takes everything I have.”
And just like that, he walked away.
Aarohi stood there long after he was gone. Long after the night swallowed his shadow.
She had said yes.
But every part of her felt like she’d lost.
Or maybe, just maybe—she’d never stood a chance to begin with.
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