Before he could even process what was happening, he felt her murmur against his lips, her voice a low, breathless whisper. "Stay."
The word hung in the air between them, a fragile plea wrapped in vulnerability. Mahnoor's hands trembled slightly as she held onto his collar, her grip tightening as if she feared he might slip away. She wasn't used to asking for things—not like this. And yet, here she was, practically begging him to stay, even though she couldn't fully explain why.
Rajveer, still reeling from the kiss, stood there in stunned silence. His mind was a jumbled mess of confusion, disbelief, and something else—something he didn't want to admit. He stared down at Mahnoor, her face inches from his, her eyes searching his for some kind of response. He could see the vulnerability in her expression, the way her tough exterior had momentarily crumbled, revealing a side of her he hadn't seen before.
For a brief, fleeting moment, the weight of their rivalry, their cultural differences, and the chaos of their families' underworld connections seemed to fade into the background. There was only the two of them, standing in the quiet of the dorm room, caught in a moment neither of them had expected.
Rajveer swallowed hard, his heart pounding in his chest. He had no idea how to respond. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind, but none of them made sense. This was Mahnoor, the girl who had spent weeks trying to push him out of her space, who had made his life a series of petty annoyances. And yet, now, she was asking him to stay, as if everything between them had shifted in the span of a single heartbeat.
His hands, which had been hanging awkwardly at his sides, slowly moved up to rest on her arms, not pushing her away but not pulling her closer either. He was still caught between disbelief and hesitation, unsure of what to do next.
Mahnoor, sensing his hesitation, pulled back slightly, her grip on his collar loosening but not completely letting go. She bit her lip, her chest rising and falling with each breath. "I just… don't want you to leave," she whispered, her voice barely audible. There was a raw honesty in her words, a vulnerability she hadn't meant to show, but it was too late to take it back now.
Rajveer looked at her, the tension between them palpable, the air thick with unspoken emotions. He still couldn't fully grasp what had just happened, but something told him that things wouldn't go back to the way they had been before. Not after this.
With a deep breath, he gently loosened her grip on his collar, his hands brushing against hers. He didn't know what to say, didn't know if there were any words that could capture the complexity of the moment. But as he looked into her eyes, he realized that maybe words weren't needed.
The room was quiet, save for the soft sound of their breathing. Mahnoor's heart raced in her chest, the weight of the moment pressing down on her. She had taken a risk, acted on impulse, and now, she waited—unsure of what would come next.
The day moved forward, but for Mahnoor, time felt like it was dragging, every second weighed down by the events of the morning. After kissing Rajveer and asking him to stay, she had avoided him for the rest of the morning, choosing instead to bury herself in her class materials, trying to convince herself that she wasn't unraveling inside. She couldn't explain why she had kissed him or why she had asked him to stay. There was something between them—something she couldn't quite define—but it gnawed at her, unsettled and unspoken.
Later that day, when it was time for their next lecture, Mahnoor entered the classroom, her usual desk buddy giving her a small wave from their usual spot. But Mahnoor hesitated. She glanced over at Rajveer, who was already seated, his head buried in his notes. A strange sense of longing mixed with frustration tugged at her. She couldn't ignore it, no matter how hard she tried.
Without a word, she crossed the room and took the empty seat beside him. Rajveer looked up, slightly surprised but didn't say anything. They hadn't spoken since that moment in her dorm room, and though the air between them was thick with unspoken tension, neither seemed ready to address it.
Mahnoor busied herself by taking out her notebook and pen, staring straight ahead as though she were fully focused on the lecture. But in truth, she wasn't listening to the professor's words. Her mind was racing with thoughts of Rajveer and the complicated mess she had created for herself.
Minutes into the lecture, her fingers started tapping restlessly on her notebook, her frustration bubbling beneath the surface. She couldn't concentrate, couldn't shake the memory of his lips on hers or the vulnerability she had shown him. It gnawed at her, but it wasn't just regret—it was something more. Something she didn't want to name.
Without fully thinking about what she was doing, Mahnoor's hand slid off her desk and moved toward Rajveer's. Underneath the desk, where no one could see, she grasped his hand, holding it tightly, almost possessively.
Rajveer tensed at the sudden contact, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. But he didn't pull away. Instead, he let her hold his hand, though his expression remained neutral. His mind, however, was anything but calm. The warmth of her hand in his brought back the memory of that morning, and the confusion that had been swirling inside him returned with full force.
As they sat through the lecture, Mahnoor didn't loosen her grip. Her hand was firm, as if she was silently making a statement that even she didn't fully understand. Rajveer sat beside her, not daring to look at her directly, but he could feel the tension in the way she held his hand. It wasn't romantic—it was something else. Something between desire, frustration, and an unspoken need for connection.
By the end of the lecture, the class began to file out. Mahnoor slowly let go of his hand, feeling the absence of his warmth immediately. They packed their things in silence, and Rajveer stood up, slinging his bag over his shoulder. Mahnoor, still lost in her own thoughts, followed him as they walked out of the room together.
As they made their way through the hallway, Mahnoor's heart pounded in her chest. She had never been this close to someone before, not in this way. She could feel her emotions swirling inside her like a storm—anger, frustration, confusion, and something else she wasn't ready to name.
Finally, as they reached a quiet corner of the corridor, she stopped, turning to face him. Rajveer looked down at her, his expression unreadable, but there was a question in his eyes, waiting for her to speak.
Mahnoor's breath caught in her throat. She opened her mouth, but the words tangled on her tongue, refusing to come out cleanly. She hated this—this vulnerability, this uncertainty. She was always in control, always knew what she wanted. But with Rajveer, everything felt blurred, undefined.
"I hate you," she blurted out, her voice harsher than she intended. Rajveer raised an eyebrow, but she didn't stop. The words were tumbling out now, and she couldn't hold them back. "And I love...no, like… nah, I just... I want your company all at the same time."