Ruhanika’s POV
My little human alarm was shaking me and telling me to wake up, but I ignored him and pulled him into a hug.
“Sleep,” I mumbled, half-dead.
But my tiny alarm was persistent.
“Bui, wake up or Mumma will scold us.”
I grumbled again and buried my face into the pillow. Ayan sighed dramatically, like he was the adult and I was the problematic child.
And then we heard,
“Both of you come down right now! If I come up, I will drag you both!”
We shot up like rockets.
I turned to Ayan. He looked back at me with his big puppy eyes.
“Bachcha, if we don’t want to die, let’s go.”
He nodded like a soldier preparing for war.
I hurriedly pushed him out.
“You go, I’ll freshen up.”
After getting ready, I walked down and sat at the dining table very quietly. I didn’t even look up from my plate because I could feel Bhabhi’s glare burning the top of my skull.
Ayan was doing the same eating while looking at the plate like it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.
The moment breakfast ended and we tried to run for our lives, Bhabhi’s voice came:
“Stop.”
We sat back so fast the chairs squeaked.
“I want to tell you something,” she said.
Everyone looked at her.
“I’m planning to send Ayan to the hostel.”
“WHAT?!”
Our entire family turned into a live audience of an Indian daily soap.
Badi Ma gasped.
“Why?”
Bhabhi inhaled sharply.
“Because Ayan is getting mischievous day by day. I got complaints that he’s fighting, not listening, coming late and”
She looked directly at me.
“The last part you know very well.”
I blinked innocently.
Ayan came running to me and hugged my waist.
“Bui, I don’t want to go to the hostel.”
I looked around. Everyone was silent. Traitors.
So I spoke.
“But Bhabhi, he is a kid. If he won’t do mischief, who will?”
She glared at me.
I instantly looked down.
Then she began the list.
One after another.
Fight. Broken tooth. Lizard prank. Maths teacher falling.
And when his teacher told him if he comes late again he will get suspended, he replied “I’ll tell my Bui to buy the school and ask her to change the school timing from morning to afternoon so I don’t need to wake up early.”
By the time she finished, I also wanted to send Ayan to the hostel.
I turned to him.
He was giving me the full power of puppy eyes.
“Speak,” I mouthed.
He sighed.
“The boy started the fight. He was bullying my friend, so I punched him. And the tooth was already shaking. And the math teacher she was scolding us and gave punishment for no reason, so we placed a fake lizard on her table.”
He looked up cutely.
“We didn’t want to hurt her.”
“See, Bhabhi, he didn’t do it purposely,” I said.
“Okay,” she replied. “Then what about coming late to school every day?”
“Well,” I clapped my hands, “the idea is not bad. I can buy the school and change the timings. Yes, I can do that.”
Ayan lit up.
“Yes Bui! Let’s do it!”
We high-fived.
Parth elbowed me.
I turned. “What?”
He pointed ahead.
Bhabhi was glaring at us like she was planning our funeral.
I nervously rubbed my neck.
“I’m going to the office.”
“Sit.”
I sat.
“Seriously, you want to buy the school? If you even think about it, I will send him to the hostel and you’ll never be allowed to meet him.”
Ayan and I looked at each other.
We screamed in perfect sync:
“YOU CAN’T DO THAT!”
“How can we stay away from each other?!” Ayan added, dramatically clutching my arm.
“Just like when your Bui was in the U.S,” Bhabhi said casually.
“But we talked every day!” Ayan argued.
“And we met on every holiday!”
“That’s not the point,” she replied. “If one more complaint comes, you’re going to the hostel,” she said, pointing at Ayan. “And if you,” she pointed at me, “think about buying the school, both of you will never go on any trip.”
We both sat up straight.
“Yes boss.”
Bhabhi shook her head.
“I don’t know what will happen when Ruhi gets married,” Dadi said.
“No, Bui is never going away from me,” Ayan declared.
“Yes Dadi, Ruhi isn’t getting married anytime soon,” Rishabh bhai agreed.
Everyone nodded.
I smiled and kissed the top of Ayan’s head.
“Don’t worry, Bachcha. I’m never leaving you.”
At Ruhanika’s Office
The moment I entered my cabin, I collapsed into my chair like a dead fish.
“Hostel? Really?” I mumbled, rubbing my temples. “Ayan is going to kill me with stress before I get married.”
My phone buzzed.
I glanced at the screen and froze.
Aayansh.
WHY?
WHY SO EARLY IN THE MORNING?
I unlocked it with hesitation.
AAYANSH: Good morning. Did you reach the office or are you still sleeping?
I blinked.
My heart did a weird thud-thud thing.
I typed:
RUHI: I reached. I’m a responsible person. Not like you.
He replied instantly.
AAYANSH: Don’t lie so confidently.
I rolled my eyes but my smile was already forming.
Then another message came.
AAYANSH: Also saw this on the way and it reminded me of you.
A picture popped up.
A tiny coffee mug that said:
“Chaotic but lovable.”
My soul left my body.
WHAT DOES HE MEAN BY THIS?!
Am I supposed to scream? Blush? Run away?
I chose none.
I just stared at the screen like a statue.
Then he texted again.
AAYANSH: Are you free after office today?
FREE?
Who is free??
Certainly not my brain.
I didn’t reply immediately because my heart was busy doing cardio without warning.
Just then
My cabin door swung open and Bhabhi marched in, looking stressed and suspiciously calm.
Never a good sign.
“Ruhi,” she said.
“What happened?” I asked, already panicking.
She didn’t reply.
She just handed me her phone.
Ayan’s school number flashed on the screen.
My soul left my body.
“NO. NO. WHY ARE THEY CALLING?” I whispered.
“Talk,” she ordered, pushing the phone toward me.
“WHY ME? YOU ARE HIS MOTHER!”
“Because the last time I spoke to them, I almost said things I shouldn’t have.
So YOU talk.”
Great.
Perfect.
The responsibility of Ayan’s crimes had officially been transferred to me.
She pressed the speaker before I could escape.
“Hello?” I said, voice shaking.
“Hello ma’am. This is Ayan’s school”
I slapped my forehead.
Behind me, Bhabhi crossed her arms like a strict principal.
I panicked and blurted the only thing my brain could produce:
“HE DIDN’T DO IT!”
Bhabhi gasped and hit my arm.
“What do you mean he didn’t do it?! We don’t even know what he DID!”
The teacher continued,
“We actually need to discuss something important about Ayan—”
“I SWEAR HE’S INNOCENT!” I shouted again.
“RUHI! Stop confessing the crime he hasn't committed!" Bhabhi hissed.
The teacher tried again,
“Ma’am, if you could just let me”
“He’s a good boy!” I yelled.
“Sometimes he looks violent but that’s just his face structure!”
“MA’AM!” the teacher finally shouted.
We both froze.
“There is NO complaint today.”
My jaw dropped.
Then she added,
“We are only calling to remind you about the parent-teacher meeting this Friday.”
“OHhhhh.”
Bhabhi took her phone back and cleared her throat like she wasn’t embarrassed.
“Thank you,” she said politely and hung up.
Then she turned to me slowly.
“Next time, I will send YOU to school instead of Ayan.”
I nodded like an obedient cow.
“Ji, Bhabhi.”
She rubbed her forehead and sighed.
“Ruhi, I’m warning you again. One more complaint and that boy is going to the hostel. And YOU… I don’t even want to start.”
I nodded aggressively like a school student.
“Ji, Bhabhi.”
She gave me one last glare and walked out of my office.
The moment the door shut, I collapsed into my chair and let out the breath I’d been holding since morning.
“Why is my life like this?” I whispered to myself.
Just then, my personal phone buzzed.
AAYANSH : ?
AAYANSH :Busy saving the world or what?
AAYANSH : Are you free after office?
I stared at the screen.
My stomach did a full gymnastics routine.
I typed one letter:
“Y.”
And the door to my cabin FLEW open.
I jumped so high I nearly died.
A smooth voice said,
“Didn’t even say good morning to me?”
My brain froze.
My heart dropped to my toes.
Of course.
Of course it was HIM.
Aayansh.
Standing at my door like the male lead of the story.
Hands in pockets.
Smirk on his lips.
Looking like he knew EXACTLY how badly he was ruining my oxygen levels.
“What..what are you doing here?” I asked, trying to sound normal.
I did not sound normal.
I sounded like a dying WiFi connection.
He stepped inside slowly, closing the door behind him.
“I came to ask you something.”
I swallowed.
“What?”
He stopped right beside my desk and leaned down slightly.
“You.”
OH GOD.
MY HEART.
STOP.
“So?” he asked softly.
“Are you free after office?”
I opened my mouth
And my phone ran again.
The sound was so loud I nearly fell off my chair.
He raised an eyebrow.
“Who is it?” he tried to peek.
But I grabbed the phone without looking.
“Hello?”
“Ruhi.”
I froze.
It was Rishabh bhai.
Why did everyone want to kill my peace today?
His voice was serious.
Like really serious.
“Come home.
My heart skipped.
“Bhai, what happened?”
He sighed heavily.
“It’s about Ayan.”
My stomach dropped.
Before I could process, I felt Aayansh’s hand on my shoulder.
“Ruhi?” he asked softly.
“What happened?”
I couldn’t answer.
Because Bhai said one last thing that made my blood run cold:
“Just come home. Immediately, No excuses.”
He hung up.
I stared at the phone, breath stuck in my throat.
Aayansh leaned closer, eyes worried.
“Ruhi, talk to me. What happened?”
But I had only one thought in my mind:
Something was seriously wrong.
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