The quiet in the room had grown still. Not peaceful—watchful.
Jaanvi lay nestled beside Aditya, her eyes half-closed now. Exhausted. Her arms were curled near her chest, curled into his hoodie like it was the only shield between her and the rest of the world.
Aditya hadn't moved.
He was still holding her. Still scanning the dark.
Still listening.
His phone was on the coffee table. Her phone was next to it—silent now. For a while.
And then...
Buzz.
The screen lit up.
Jaanvi flinched slightly but didn't pull away. Her eyes fluttered open, but Aditya was already there, already reaching.
Unknown Number
3:07 AM
"That was sweet. Too bad she didn't hold you like that last year, huh?"
Aditya stared at the message.
No reaction. No breath.
He slowly unlocked the phone.
Jaanvi was watching him now, quiet and alert. She didn't say anything. She didn't need to.
He opened a reply box.
His fingers hovered over the screen.
Then he typed:
3:08 AM
Who are you?
He waited.
The dots didn't come.
No response.
3:10 AM
You think scaring her makes you powerful? Coward.
Say something now. I'm here.
Still nothing.
Jaanvi blinked slowly. "You texted back?"
He nodded, expression carved from stone.
Another pause.
Then the screen buzzed again.
3:12 AM
You're not in control here, Aditya.
You never were.
Aditya's jaw tightened.
His thumb flew across the screen again.
3:12 AM
Wrong. I'm sitting next to her. I know who she is. You only know what you heard. That's not power. That's obsession.
You want attention. Not tonight.
Another pause.
And then—
3:14 AM
You should be more careful with your words. Or I'll remind her of everything you said the night you left her, too.
He stared at that one.
His mind burned back to that summer.
The fight.
The silence.
The words he did say—the ones he regretted every time he looked at her now.
Jaanvi watched his face change.
"I don't care what they say," she said softly, voice still raspy from the night. "Whatever you said back then... you don't have to explain."
He looked at her then.
"I do."
And he meant it.
But not tonight.
Tonight, the priority wasn't picking at old wounds.
It was protecting her.
He typed again.
3:15 AM
You can try to break her. You can try to twist every word we ever said.
But she's stronger than you.
And she's not alone anymore.
He hit send.
This time, there was no reply.
Not for several minutes.
Not until both phones dimmed.
And the tension in the room—though still thick—shifted slightly.
Because Jaanvi leaned her head back on his shoulder again.
And Aditya didn't let go.
Outside, the street was silent.
But someone, somewhere, read those texts in the dark...
And smiled.
Some shadows run when challenged.
Some dig in deeper.
And some invisible threads become battle lines.
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