Ron gave them a dramatic bow, still half-asleep in his hoodie and mismatched socks.
"Alright, you nerds win. I'm out before someone tries to debate my sleep schedule."
He shuffled off toward the guest room, leaving a trail of chips and chaos in his wake.
The living room was mostly quiet again, everyone else still knocked out. Only Jaanvi and Aditya sat awake, now standing across from each other like they were back on the stage—except this one had a stained rug and beanbags for chairs.
Aditya smirked. "So what's the topic, then? Best comfort food? Pav Bhaji versus... what, Maggi?"
"Please," Jaanvi said, rolling her eyes. "We both know I'd win that one."
He crossed his arms. "Only because you're stubborn, not because you're right."
She stepped closer, her voice lowering into that calm, clipped tone she used in real tournaments. "That's rich coming from someone who argues confidence equals truth."
Aditya blinked at her. "Are we still debating or just airing grievances?"
Jaanvi gave him a mock shrug. "Bit of both."
They laughed—quiet and easy.
Then her phone buzzed.
Once.
Twice.
A third time.
The smile faded from her face before she even looked at the screen.
Aditya saw it happen.
"Jaanvi."
Her hands moved slowly, picking up the phone with hesitation.
She clicked the screen.
2:46 AM
Unknown Number
"Funny how close you two are again. You think he'll actually forgive you this time?"
Her stomach tightened.
She scrolled down.
2:47 AM
"He's going to hate you when he finds out what you said the night you broke up."
Jaanvi blinked. "What is this person even—?"
Buzz.
2:47 AM
"You told someone it was all a game to you. That you were just trying to prove you could make him fall for you. You called him 'pathetic' for how fast he did."
She felt like she'd been slapped.
"That's not true," she said out loud. "I never said that."
Aditya's expression was unreadable.
"I wouldn't," she added, voice firmer now.
Aditya nodded slowly, still staring at the phone. "I believe you."
She looked up. "You do?"
His eyes met hers. "If I didn't, we wouldn't be here right now."
That should've comforted her.
But her phone buzzed again.
2:48 AM
"He doesn't know about the night you cried in the locker room. The things you said into your phone. Should I remind you?"
Aditya tilted his head. "Locker room?"
Jaanvi's lips parted.
She remembered.
The night after their last tournament together. Before the break-up. She'd stayed behind. Sat alone on the floor of the locker room with her phone to her ear, recording a voice memo she never sent. Venting into the dark.
"I said... I didn't understand why he stopped looking at me the way he used to," she said quietly. "That I missed him. That it felt like I was losing something I never even got to keep."
Aditya looked stunned. "You... recorded that?"
She nodded, a tear slipping down her cheek. "I deleted it. No one ever heard it."
Buzz.
2:49 AM
"I did."
Aditya took the phone from her hands, gently but without hesitation.
He stared at the message like he could burn a hole through the screen.
Then he looked at her. "Someone's been watching you for a long time."
She felt her skin crawl.
Aditya stepped closer.
"I'm not going to let them get to you."
"Even if it's someone from school?" she asked, voice brittle. "Someone we know?"
He didn't flinch. "Then they're going to regret it."
But before either of them could speak again, another buzz.
This one with an image.
It took a second to load.
And then it filled the screen:
A blurry photo of Jaanvi, tonight, curled under the blanket beside Aditya.
Taken from outside the window.
Jaanvi backed away.
Aditya's hands tightened around the phone like he might crush it.
"Stay here," he said, his voice low and calm—but his eyes had gone cold.
He walked to the window in three strides, yanked the curtains apart.
Nothing.
Darkness.
Wind.
But someone had been there.
Someone was still watching.
Some truths are buried in words.
Some lies hide in silence.
And some invisible threads pull tighter the more you try to escape.
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