Author’s POV
It had been two days since Ruhi felt that someone was following her. Two days since fear had stopped being a feeling and started becoming a choice.
She hadn’t stepped out of the house even once.
Rishabh had been firm. “If you need to go anywhere, take the bodyguards,” he’d said, his concern barely masked behind calm authority.
But Ruhi had shaken her head.
She didn’t want that kind of attention.
Didn’t want whispered worries or eyes constantly tracking her every move.
More than anything, she didn’t want her family living in fear because of her.
So she stayed home.Worked from her room. Answered calls. Pretended everything was normal.
In front of them, she was calm. Controlled. Unshaken.But inside, she knew she was waiting.
Waiting for the tension to ease, Waiting for the air to feel lighter again.
She also knew Aayansh was carrying his own storm.
At first, he hadn’t told her.
But she could hear it in his voice the restraint, the careful pauses, the way he avoided certain details. And after asking him again and again, he finally gave in and told her about the situation at the company.
She hadn’t panicked.She trusted him.
Aayansh had always been strongest when pressure tried to corner him.
And he proved that once again.
He fixed the problem faster than anyone had expected.
The audit closed quietly.
The false approvals were traced. The access breach was identified. The internal systems tightened and locked down.
The board, left with no choice but to accept the truth, restored his authority without ceremony.
No press release. No apology.
Just silence.
The kind of silence that follows a failed ambush.
From the outside, it looked like control had returned.From the shadows, it felt like something else entirely.
Because the man who had planned to break Aayansh had underestimated one thing.
Aayansh Singhaniya didn’t break under pressure.
He adapts.
And that… irritated him watching far more than failure ever could.
That morning, Ruhi stood in front of the mirror, adjusting her hair with steady hands.
Today, she was going back to the office.Not because the fear had disappeared.
But because she refused to let it decide her life.
What she didn’t know was that while Aayansh had won this round,
the game itself hadn’t ended.It had only changed its rhythm.
…..
As things slowly fell back into place, Aayansh and Ruhi finally allowed themselves a pause.
The last two days had been heavy filled with unspoken fear, long silences, and worries neither of them wanted to burden the other with. So that morning, they chose something simple.
Breakfast. Together.
The café was warm, familiar. Soft music played in the background as sunlight filtered through the glass windows. For the first time in days, Ruhi laughed without checking over her shoulder. Aayansh watched her closely, relief settling into his chest with every smile she gave him.
They talked about nothing important.
Missed meals. Office gossip. Small arguments that ended in teasing smiles.
For a moment, it almost felt normal again.
As if the fear had been a misunderstanding.
As if the danger had passed.
They didn’t know that peace was only possible because the one watching had gone quiet.
And silence, when chosen, was never harmless.
Unknown’s POV
The screen glowed in the dim room.The café footage played again.
Ruhi, leaning forward, laughing softly.
Aayansh, watching her like the world began and ended with her.
The Unknown’s jaw tightened.The plan had failed.
Work was supposed to distract him. Pressure was supposed to weaken him. Distance was supposed to grow quietly between them.
Instead, Aayansh had adapted.
Instead, Ruhi was smiling.
He paused the video.For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then, very softly, he spoke not angry, not loud.
“Interesting.”
He hadn’t miscalculated their bond.He had underestimated their timing.
This wasn’t defeat.It was information.
He leaned back, eyes never leaving the frozen image of them together.
“Enjoy it,” he murmured.
“Because this was the last easy solution.”
The café scene remained paused on the screen.
Two people believed the storm had passed.
Unaware that the man watching had already begun planning what came next.
Enough of being the shadow.
Watching from the background had its satisfaction. Quiet. Patient. Calculated. But patience had its limits. Ruhi had grown comfortable. Aayansh had grown confident. And that… that could not stand.
It was time to step in.
The city lights reflected off the sleek black car parked outside her office. She was coming down the steps now, bad in hand, the soft click of her heels echoing in the empty lot. She moved unaware, her guard low, the trust she placed in the world radiating from her every step.
I allowed myself a faint smile. She thought she was safe. Thought the danger was abstract, far away, hidden in emails and shadows. She didn’t realize… I was always closer than she guessed.
My fingers brushed against the note I had left on her windshield.
Doll, it’s time. We will meet.
Not a threat. Not yet. Just the first proof. A reminder. A signal. She would understand later that this was no mistake, no prank, no coincidence.
I watched as she paused at the note, the wind tugging at her hair. Fear flickered in her eyes brief, almost imperceptible. Perfect. Enough to make her heart beat a little faster, enough to make her remember me even before she had seen me.
I did not reveal myself. Not yet. Shadows were more powerful than light. Absence was more potent than presence. But soon… very soon, I would enter the game for real.
For now, I stepped back into the darkness of the parking lot, my eyes never leaving her. Every move she made, every breath she took, every heartbeat was accounted for.
She had no idea that today, the watcher would no longer remain invisible.
And I? I was finally moving.
Ruhi’s POV
I froze mid step, eyes locked on the note stuck under my windshield wiper.
Doll, it’s time. We will meet.
My breath caught. My hands shook slightly as I reached for it. The handwriting… precise. Familiar in a way I couldn’t place. And yet… cold. Intentionally unsettling.
I looked around the parking lot. Empty. Quiet. The city lights reflected on the asphalt. Nothing moved. No one watched or so I told myself.
But the hair on my neck prickled. That same feeling. Like someone was there, just beyond my vision, waiting. Watching. Patient.
My fingers trembled as I unfolded the note.
I should have called Aayansh. I should have run. I should have… something.
But my instincts froze. I didn’t see anyone, but I knew. I knew I wasn’t alone.
A whisper soft, deliberate brushed past my ear.
“Doll…”
I spun around. Nothing. The parking lot remained empty. My pulse raced, every heartbeat echoing in my ears.
It’s not real, I whispered to myself. It’s just my imagination.
I didn’t wait.
The moment I got inside the car, I started the engine and drove away.
My hands were tight on the steering wheel, knuckles white. Every mirror felt dangerous. Every turn made my heart jump. I kept checking behind me, beside me searching for headlights that followed too closely, for a shadow that stayed just a second longer than it should.
But there was nothing.No one.That scared me more than if there had been.
I reached home and went straight to my room, closing the door behind me as if it could keep the fear out. My chest felt heavy, my breathing shallow. I dropped my bag on the chair and pulled out my phone.
I needed answers.I called my assistant immediately.
“I need today’s parking lot footage,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt. “From the moment before I arrived. Send everything.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied without questions.
The wait felt endless.
Every sound in the house made me flinch. Every second stretched too long. When my phone finally buzzed, my stomach twisted.
I opened my laptop and played the footage.
At first, nothing seemed wrong.Cars. People walking. Ordinary life.
Then I saw him.
A tall figure entered the frame minutes before I had arrived. He moved calmly, like he belonged there. His face was a completely hidden black mask, black hoodie, pulled up just enough to erase every identifiable feature.
I leaned closer to the screen.
My breath hitched.He walked straight to my car.
No hesitation.No rush.
He placed the note under the wiper carefully, almost… gently.
Then he did something that made my blood turn cold.
He looked up.
Directly into the camera.
As if he knew…knew that I would be watching this later.As if this moment was meant for me alone.
My fingers trembled on the trackpad.
Even with the mask on, I could feel it.He was smiling.
Not hiding. Not afraid. Not even in a hurry.
He stepped back, adjusted his hoodie, and walked away unbothered, as though he had already won something.
A chill ran through me.
This wasn’t someone trying to stay invisible.This was someone announcing himself.
The door behind me opened softly.
“Ruhi?” Rishabh bhai’s voice broke the silence. “You came straight to your room. Is everything okay?”
I couldn’t speak.
My throat felt tight, words trapped behind fear and disbelief.
Instead, I turned the laptop toward him.
He frowned at first, confused then his expression changed as the footage played.
His jaw clenched.
I handed him the note without a word.
He read it once.Then again.
I watched his face harden, the calm leaving his eyes, replaced by something darker. Protective. Dangerous.
“This,” he said slowly, gripping the paper, “is not a warning.”
He looked at me then, his voice firm but controlled.“This is a challenge.”
And in that moment, I understood something terrifyingly clear.
The man who had been watching from the shadows for so long
Had finally decided to be seen.
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