Ananya's Pov
Ananya's PoV
I had settled quietly into my usual seat long before the lecture began, trying my best to blend into the background of the classroom.
Head down.
Book open.
Earphones in.
The universal signs of do not disturb.
My head was throbbing painfully from the lack of sleep, and every little sound inside the classroom only made it worse.
Chairs scraping against the floor.
Loud conversations from the back benches.
Someone is laughing a little too close to my ear.
I closed my eyes briefly, pressing my fingers against my temple.
Maybe staying awake till two in the morning, trying to reorganise my entire schedule, wasn’t my brightest idea.
But technically, it wasn’t my fault.
To free up time for tutoring Reyansh, I had shifted almost everything in my planner. Assignments, revision slots, club work, library hours — every neatly organised part of my routine had been rearranged around one stupid tutoring session.
A tutoring session that never even happened.
And because life apparently enjoyed mocking me, all that extra work had piled up together, forcing me to stay awake half the night finishing everything.
Hence:
no sleep,
a terrible headache,
and absolutely no patience left.
But no one needed to know that.
Especially not a certain Malhotra.
The last thing I wanted was for Reyansh to think his actions had affected me enough to ruin my routine.
Because they hadn’t.
At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
I already knew he’d be in class today, and I had mentally prepared myself to avoid him at all costs.
Unfortunately, life clearly had other plans.
Just when the lecture was about to begin, Sir suddenly asked Reyansh to sit beside me.
Why does this only happen to me?
Anyone but him.
He looked equally annoyed by the arrangement, but after a failed attempt at arguing with Sir, he finally walked toward my bench.
I could hear every little thing he did.
The sound of the chair being pulled back.
His bag dropped onto the desk louder than necessary.
The creak of the bench as he sat down beside me.
I didn’t bother looking at him, even though my heart was slamming painfully against my chest.
To say I was nervous would be an understatement.
I made sure not even a single part of my body touched his as we sat beside each other. There was enough distance between us for another person to fit, and I intended to keep it that way.
I kept my eyes fixed on the board, pretending to focus entirely on the lecture.
That’s when he started tapping his pen against the desk.
Slowly at first.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
I ignored it.
But of course, Reyansh Malhotra wasn’t someone who understood the concept of stopping.
The tapping grew louder this time, more deliberate, almost like he was waiting for me to react.
I tightened my grip around my pen but kept my expression neutral.
Not happening.
A few seconds later, the tapping stopped.
Peace.
For exactly five seconds.
Then came the aggressive shuffling of his bag beside me.
Zippers opening.
Books dropping.
Papers crumpling.
I inhaled slowly through my nose.
Still didn’t look at him.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could practically feel him glancing at me every few seconds, probably waiting for me to snap.
Unfortunately for him, I was determined to give him absolutely nothing.
Not my attention.
Not my irritation.
Not even a glance.
But God, he was making it difficult.
Then his chair scraped loudly against the floor as he leaned back carelessly.
A few students turned around briefly.
I remained still, eyes fixed stubbornly on my notebook, even though I hadn’t written a single word in the last two minutes.
Beside me, he let out a quiet sigh.
Dramatic.
I knew exactly what he was doing.
He wanted a reaction.
Any reaction.
And maybe, on any other day, I would’ve given him one.
But not today.
Not after yesterday.
Not after I sat in that library like an idiot, rearranging my entire day for someone who couldn’t even bother showing up.
The second the class ended, I hurriedly started packing my bag, shoving my notebook and pens inside a little too quickly.
I just needed to get out of there.
Away from him.
Away from this weird tension sitting heavily between us.
But apparently, Reyansh Malhotra wasn’t planning on making things easy for me.
I could hear him calling my name from behind, irritation clear in his voice, but I refused to respond.
If I looked at him for even one second, I knew every bit of frustration and disappointment I had been suppressing since yesterday would show on my face.
And I hated that he still had the power to affect me this much.
I tightened my grip around my bag and quickened my movements, hoping he would eventually get the hint and leave me alone.
But just as I was about to walk away, I suddenly felt a soft grip around my wrist.
My steps froze instantly.
For a second, my eyes dropped to his hand around my wrist before slowly lifting to meet his gaze.
And annoyingly enough, my heart betrayed me.
One look at him, and suddenly I became painfully aware of how close he was standing.
His eyes were fixed entirely on me.
The slight tension in his jaw.
The frustration was hidden behind his expression.
Then, almost immediately, he let go of my wrist, as though he had only now realised what he had done.
I instinctively took a small step back, creating distance between us again.
Safe distance.
Because being this close to him after yesterday felt dangerous in a way I didn’t want to think about.
As he spoke, I simply stared at him in disbelief.
Did he seriously expect me to act normal after the stunt he had pulled yesterday?
The audacity of this man to question my behaviour when he was the one who never showed up was honestly unbelievable.
But maybe this was my fault too.
Maybe I was the only one who had taken that tutoring session seriously enough to rearrange my entire schedule for it.
To him, it clearly wasn’t important.
Just another thing he could skip without caring.
And somehow, that realisation hurt more than I wanted to admit.
So instead of letting any of that show on my face, I smiled at him politely, masking every bit of hurt sitting heavily inside my chest.
And then I walked away before he could see through me.
Time Skip
I was at the canteen later that evening with Ishu, getting something to eat before heading back to my room.
“Aru, you look exhausted,” she said, taking the tray from my hands before I could protest.
“It’s alright, Ishu. I’ll manage.”
We were walking past the crowded tables, looking for an empty seat, when she spoke again.
“If it were me, I would’ve strangled that Malhotra senior. How dare he make you wait for two hours and not even show up?”
My entire body froze.
Before I could stop her from saying anything else, a familiar voice spoke from somewhere behind me.
“Two hours?”
That voice.
The very same one that had been irritating my soul since morning.
My steps came to an abrupt halt.
Slowly, I turned around.
And there he was.
Reyansh.
Sitting with his entire friend group at the table right beside ours.
Author's Pov
For the first time that day, the irritation on his face was gone.
Instead, he looked… stunned.
His expression slowly shifted as his eyes landed on me properly.
And suddenly, it was like he was finally noticing everything.
My pale face.
The exhaustion under my eyes.
The silence I had wrapped around myself since morning.
That was the exact moment Reyansh Malhotra realised he had messed up far more badly than he initially thought.
Chapter Aesthetics:
What do guys think about Reyansh so far?
Why do you think he is the he is?
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