Arvi's pov:

I didn't expect today to go like this.

Rayaan Oberoi wasn't exactly known for compliments or for looking at me like I was anything more than a nuisance he couldn't shake off. But today... he surprised me.

We were reviewing the pitch I'd helped prepare for the Gupta deal. I stood to the side of the conference room, nervously clutching my notes, preparing for the usual him finding some microscopic flaw and using it to tear me apart. But he didn't.

Instead, after a long pause, he leaned back in his chair, folded his arms, and looked right at me.

"This was... impressive," he said.

I blinked. "Sorry?"

He tilted his head, a rare smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "You heard me. Clean, impactful, and you handled the research smartly. Good job, Arvi."

My heart actually skipped. Good job, Arvi. Was I dreaming?

"Th-thank you," I stammered, then immediately wanted to smack myself for sounding like a five-year-old winning a participation medal.

But he didn't mock me. He just gave a small nod, then went right back into his usual cool, composed self. The rest of the meeting passed in a blur, but those words good job echoed in my head like a song stuck on loop.

After work, as I was gathering my things, he walked past me... then stopped.

"Come on. I'll drop you."

I gawked. "You...will?"

He rolled his eyes with a smirk. "Don't make me repeat myself. It's on my way."

It wasn't. Not even remotely. But I didn't argue.

The ride was quiet at first. But not awkward. Comfortable, somehow. He asked about my work actually asked and I found myself laughing once or twice, genuinely, without fear of being judged.

When we pulled up in front of my building, I hesitated before opening the door.

"Thanks for the ride," I said, glancing at him.

His hand was on the steering wheel, relaxed. He looked at me with that same unreadable gaze of his, but something in it felt softer. Less guarded.

"See you tomorrow," he said simply.

And for the first time since I'd met him, I didn't dread the thought of 'tomorrow.' In fact, as I stepped out and walked toward my gate, I realized something I wasn't prepared for.

I liked this version of him.

And maybe... just maybe... I was starting to like him too.

.

.

.

.

The Oberoi cousins had added me to their group chat a week ago. Fam & Drama that's what it was called. Fitting, honestly. The chat was always buzzing with inside jokes, memes, dramatic life updates, and endless plans to make Rayaan Oberoi, the man everyone seemed to fear and admire, more "human."

Me? I barely spoke in it. I read everything, though. Silently. Like a shadow just observing the chaos unfold.

Aleesha:

GUYSSSS

we're starting Mission Bhabhi

operation "find a wife for Rayaan bhai" begins now!

I rolled my eyes but didn't type anything. I never really did. Not after what happened back in the mansion that morning when Rayaan shouted at me like I had personally offended his entire bloodline. I could still remember how my hands trembled when I was talking to him.

Since then, I'd kept my distance. At work, I kept my head down. In the group, I stayed quiet, but the incident that happened last night made me think about him , he protected me & after tha Around him I practically stopped breathing.

Vivaan:

someone calm

smart

who won't cry when he gives his "you're wasting my time" stare

Arekha:

Someone like...

Arvi?

My fingers froze mid-scroll.

Vanisha:

oooh imagine that

Arvi Oberoi

kinda has a nice ring to it, no?

No. No no no.

Arvi:

(typing...)

(then deleting...)

I didn't reply. What could I even say? That the idea made my stomach twist?

Not in a bad way.

In a way I didn't want to admit.

Rayaan has joined the chat

My heart jumped. Literally jumped. I knew it even before I read his name. The energy shifted. The cousins quieted. I stayed completely still.

Rayaan:

If you all have nothing better to do, stop wasting time.

Cold. Blunt. Of course.

He was always like this in the chat short, sharp, unreadable. He barely replied to anyone unless it was to shut them down. But for some reason... his messages always made me feel something. Like I wasn't just reading words I was bracing for impact.

Aleesha:

Arvi didn't even say anything

don't drag her in

Rayaan:

Then stop dragging her name into this nonsense.

Something about the way he said that so quick to shield me, but also dismiss me lit a strange ache in my chest.

He doesn't see me. Not really.

And yet... I felt seen.

Was I really that messed up?

Because somewhere deep down, under the layers of fear and silence and walls he'd built so high, a part of me... liked him.

God help me.

I put my phone face-down on the bed.

Why did it affect me so much?

He hadn't even said my name. Just threw a cold reply at everyone, shut down the conversation like he always did, and logged off like nothing mattered. Like I didn't matter.

And yet... it mattered to me.

Because despite the fear, despite everything he'd ever said to me in that sharp, cutting tone but from last night there was something about Rayaan that made it hard to look away. Like he was made of thorns but I still wanted to touch just to feel something real.

I stared at the screen again. The group chat was quiet now. No one dared say anything after Rayaan's exit. I should've been relieved. But instead, I was left with a weird flutter in my chest. A tightness. A question I couldn't silence.

Why did it sting when he dismissed me?

Before I could overthink it further, my phone buzzed.

New Message: Rayaan Oberoi

Private Chat

I blinked.

He'd never texted me before. Not one-on-one. My fingers hovered nervously over the screen before I finally opened the chat.

Rayaan:

"Don't take them seriously." It doesn't mean anything."

The words hit harder than they should've.

I knew he meant well. Knew he was trying to ease whatever awkwardness the group chat had caused.

But "It doesn't mean anything" felt like a punch.

Like a warning.

Like a reminder.

I was reading too much into it. Feeling too much. Hoping for too much.

And maybe I was.

But he didn't have to say it like that.

My fingers hovered over my keyboard, heart heavy in my chest.

Me:

I know.

I wasn't taking it seriously.

A lie.

Sent.

Three dots appeared. Then disappeared. Then came back.

Rayaan:

Good. Just focus on work. That's what matters here.

I stared at the message.

Work.

That's all I was to him. An employee. A name on a report. A responsibility.

Not someone who stayed quiet in group chats because his voice still echoed in her head. Not someone who waited a few seconds longer than necessary whenever she saw his name light up her screen.

Just... work.

I locked my phone and put it away, even though my heart felt like it was still in that chat.

And even though I kept reminding myself to forget him

a part of me didn't want to.

Arvi's pov:

I walked into Oberoi Industries with a stack of files clutched to my chest, my mind already racing with a checklist of things to get done before lunch. I was halfway to Rayaan's office when I heard his laughter. Not the usual cold, clipped chuckle I'd grown used to but a genuine one, deep and warm. It stopped me in my tracks.

Curious, I peeked through the slightly open glass door. There he was Rayaan Oberoi, in all his suited-up perfection, sitting casually on the edge of his desk. Riaan was beside him, as loud and animated as ever. And then... her.

She was laughing too loudly at something Riaan said, her hand resting a bit too comfortably on Rayaan's arm. Her hair was sleek, her dress designer, and her confidence nauseating. And the worst part? Rayaan wasn't pushing her away. He was smiling actually smiling as if her presence was perfectly welcome.

My stomach twisted, and I hated the feeling. That heat in my chest? It wasn't just irritation. It was jealousy ugly and unwelcome. I told myself I didn't care, that Rayaan was just my boss, that I couldn't care. But watching that girl touch him, seeing the way he didn't mind?

It made something tighten in my throat.

I turned away before they could see me. My steps were quick, almost angry. I had no right to feel like this. But damn it, I did.

Why did it feel like he wasn't mine, even though he never was?

Rayaan's pov:

My day was going fine. Peaceful, productive, boring just the way I liked it. That is, until the gates of hell or as the world calls him, Riaan came storming into my office like he was the CEO of Oberoi Industries.

"Look alive, grumpy pants!" he announced, arms wide like he was on a game show. "Your favorite person has arrived."

I didn't even look up. "Security really needs to start taking their job seriously."

But then I heard another pair of heels click in behind him heels that didn't belong to any of my employees. I glanced up and, yep, there she was. Kiara. Riaan's second-best friend, professional heartbreaker, and walking Instagram filter. She gave me a smile that probably caused earthquakes somewhere.

"Rayaan," she purred, like my name was dipped in chocolate. "You haven't changed a bit."

"You have," I said. "Your voice is somehow louder."

Riaan burst out laughing and plopped himself down on my couch like he was here for a movie. "God, I missed this. You being a sarcastic little raincloud. Warms my heart."

Kiara handed me a coffee she probably didn't pay for. "Peace offering. I even remembered you like it black and bitter just like your soul."

I took the cup, eyeing her fingers still wrapped around it. "Thanks. I'll cherish it right before I throw it at your head."

Riaan was loving this. "Why haven't you married him yet, K? This is peak romance."

"Because I value my sanity," she replied, still smiling sweetly at me like I was a puzzle she wanted to solve and maybe ruin.

I turned back to my desk, hoping they'd get bored. But Riaan sprawled out even more on the couch, shoes dangerously close to my glass table. "So, Ray... any drama in the mansion lately? Mysterious girl still around?"

I stiffened for half a second. Just half.

"No drama," I said coolly. "Just freeloaders."

Kiara raised a brow. "Ooh. Sounds spicy."

It wasn't. Not really. But for some reason, her laugh didn't echo in my head the way someone else's silence did. And I hated that I even noticed.

And that, unfortunately, was the real drama.