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Mary's POV~

"His name is Arjun," I said, looking at both of my friends.

I was sitting on the bed in an Indian style while Chandni and Gauri stood on either side of me.

"Why didn’t you tell us about this prince charming before?" Chandni folded her arms across her chest, narrowing her eyes at me.

"Yes, you should have mentioned him earlier," Gauri added, adjusting her glasses.

"Be careful with these men. All men are dogs," Chandni warned, shaking her head.

I nodded in agreement.

"Not all of them," Gauri muttered, lost in her own thoughts.

Chandni immediately turned to her. "Don’t tell me you’ve also met some so-called prince charming?"

Gauri’s cheeks turned red as she stuttered, "I-I met a guy in the library."

My eyes widened.

"Wow, both of my friends are busy living in their delusional worlds," Chandni muttered before disappearing into the bathroom.

I turned to Gauri, and we both smiled.

"Was he handsome?" I asked, giggling.

"More than handsome," she admitted, sitting beside me.

I hugged her. "Finally, you have other interests apart from studying."

She chuckled. "I just hope Chandni finds her prince charming too."

I followed her gaze toward the bathroom door and nodded.

Chandni's family had abandoned her due to a misunderstanding when she was just 11. Since then, she had been living with her uncle—her father’s younger brother—in Bangalore. Over time, she had distanced herself from the world.

Some people just don’t deserve a daughter.

I sighed at the thought and lay down on my bed.

Our beds were arranged in a line, and I was in the middle, curled up like a child.

A child?

I suddenly remembered how he had called me that during our first meeting, and I blushed involuntarily.

He was so caring that day, but today… his mood was completely different. Maybe he thought I was flirting with him? But then again, I was just a stranger to him.

I knew this was just attraction, not love—unlike what Chandni believed.

Because in my opinion, love isn’t something that happens at first sight.

Love is when two people know each other’s flaws and still choose to stay by each other’s side.

And in my case, we barely knew anything about each other.

I don’t think love happens overnight… or does it?

"Shut up, Mary, and sleep. You have an 8 AM class tomorrow. How are you going to wake up?" my consciousness mocked me.

Sighing, I decided to listen to it and drifted off to sleep.

***

"Let’s go watch GOAT!" Chandni exclaimed excitedly.

"Goat? You want to watch a movie or visit a farm?" I frowned at her.

She looked at me, shocked. "Greatest of All Time. In short, GOAT. It’s Thalapathy’s new movie!"

Oh. The only man Chandni loved—Vijay Thalapathy, the Kollywood superstar.

"Alright then, let me change," I said, walking toward my wardrobe.

Since both of my friends were also wearing Indian dresses, I picked out my purple anarkali suit and went to change.

After doing some light makeup, I stepped out of the washroom.

"You look beautiful," Gauri said.

Chandni nodded in agreement, and I smiled.

I walked over to them and put my arms around their shoulders.

"We’re looking beautiful, ladies. Now, let’s go and shock the world with our beauty!"

They both burst out laughing at my dramatic statement, and soon, we were on our way.

We took an auto and reached the theater.

Chandni bought the tickets, and we found our seats.

Our seats were in the corner row, so we had to squeeze through the crowd to get to them.

Soon, the movie began.

About an hour in, I felt the urge to use the washroom.

"I need to go to the washroom," I whispered to my friends.

They were too engrossed in the movie, but Gauri nodded absentmindedly, and Chandni gave me a thumbs-up.

I made my way toward the exit.

Since we often came here for movies, I knew my way around quite well.

Inside the washroom, there were already three other girls. I quickly finished up and stepped out.

But as I walked back, I noticed smoke coming from the other direction.

My heart raced in panic. Is there a fire?!

I hesitated for a second before following the smoke, but as I got closer, I realized—

It wasn’t fire.

It was cigarette smoke.

I let out a breath of relief.

Just as I was about to turn away, a familiar voice stopped me.

"What are you doing here?"

I turned around and froze.

Standing there was Arjun—with two handsome boys beside him.

Arjun wasn’t smoking, but the guy next to him, whose arms were covered in tattoos, was. The moment he noticed me, he extinguished his cigarette by pressing it against the wall.

"Hello," the third guy, who was wearing a white shirt and denim, greeted me with a small smile.

"Hey," I replied.

Arjun, on the other hand, looked impatient, still waiting for my answer.

"Are you here with your boyfriend?" the tattooed guy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, no! I’m here with my friends. They’re inside, watching the movie," I clarified quickly, sneaking a glance at Arjun.

He was now staring at the tattooed guy.

"Won’t you introduce us to your new friend?" The tattooed guy smirked at Arjun, feigning innocence.

Meanwhile, the other guy was just enjoying the scene.

Arjun let out an exasperated sigh.

"Mary, these are my friends. He is Sourav," he said, pointing at the tattooed guy. "And he is Rajveer," he added, gesturing toward the other guy.

I nodded, about to reply when—

"What took you so long?"

I turned to see Chandni and Gauri walking toward me.

"Are you okay?" Gauri asked, concerned.

Their eyes shifted toward the boys standing in front of me.

Chandni narrowed her eyes. "Are they misbehaving?"

"Hello?! Do we look like the type to do that?" Sourav responded instantly.

Chandni shot him a glare.

"Well, I don’t judge a book by its cover," she said, locking eyes with him.

For the first time, Sourav looked taken aback.

"That’s exactly what you’re doing right now," Arjun interrupted, his intense gaze fixed on me.

Sensing the tension, I quickly stepped in.

"Chandni, this is Arjun. My new friend," I emphasized, hoping she would remember our previous conversation.

She caught on quickly and nodded.

"And these are his friends—Sourav and Rajveer."

"And these are my friends—Chandni and Gauri," I introduced them.

Everyone exchanged greetings.

"Let’s go to a nearby restaurant," Arjun suggested.

I looked at Gauri and Chandni for approval.

Only then did I notice something strange about Gauri.

She was playing with the end of her

dupatta, her gaze lowered.

"Okay, let’s go," Rajveer said, his eyes lingering on Gauri.

---

To be continued...

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