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Mary's POV~

The six of us were now sitting at a restaurant table.

All the boys sat together on one sofa in front of us.

I was in the middle, with Chandni on my left, scrolling through her phone, and Gauri on my right, staring at her hands resting in her lap.

I followed Gauri’s gaze and noticed Rajveer sitting across from her, a small smile playing on his lips.

Beside him, Arjun was already looking at me.

"I knew it! You’re Arjun Malhotra!" Chandni suddenly exclaimed, looking up from her phone.

Arjun nodded.

"Son of Yash Malhotra, right?" She asked again.

Another nod.

Suddenly, Chandni grabbed my hand. "Please excuse us for a bit." She dragged me to the corner, motioning for Gauri to follow.

"Do you both have any idea who they are?" She looked at us, her voice urgent.

We shook our heads.

She sighed before explaining, "All three of them belong to powerful, rich families. Their families are billionaires!"

I stood there, dumbfounded for a moment, before bursting into laughter.

"Are you kidding me? Billionaires? Seriously, Chandni?" I laughed out loud.

"Mary, I swear! Look at this." She shoved her phone in my face.

On the screen was a photo of Arjun, Sourav, and Rajveer standing together, with the caption:

"Sons of Billionaires."

Gauri frowned. "If they’re billionaires, then why are they studying here instead of some fancy university like Harvard?"

I nodded in agreement.

"From what I know, it’s their family’s preference. Maybe they wanted to maintain privacy and avoid the media."

"I knew Arjun was the son of Yash Malhotra, the billionaire businessman, but I couldn’t recall it earlier. When I searched for him, I found out that all three of them are rich as hell," Chandni said, glancing toward the boys.

Gauri suddenly whispered, "Then… is it possible that they’re the type of guys who use girls for their own benefit?"

Her eyes flickered toward Rajveer.

My heart sank. I looked at Arjun, who was still staring at me.

A sudden wave of doubt washed over me.

"Let’s go back to the hostel," I said quickly and turned toward them.

Walking back to the table, I took a deep breath and looked at Arjun.

"I’m sorry. I didn’t know about your family background," I said carefully.

I continued, "I think there’s been a misunderstanding. We’re not the type of girls you might be thinking of."

Without waiting for a response, I turned and walked away with Gauri and Chandni.

But before I could take another step—

A strong grip on my wrist stopped me.

I turned to see Arjun holding my hand.

Behind him, Rajveer and Sourav stood watching.

"The three of you have completely mistaken us," Arjun said, his voice calm but firm. "Our intentions are not what you think. We just want to be—" he paused, "friends.

Then, he slowly released my hand.

"Oh, come on! Cheer up, child. You have three new friends now," Sourav grinned, flashing a dimpled smile.

"Yes, consider us your new friends. Right, Gauri?" Rajveer suddenly asked, looking directly at her.

Gauri blinked. "Huh?"

He raised his eyebrows.

"I mean… yeah, okay. Let’s be friends."

She shot me a nervous glance. I turned to Chandni, who looked completely unamused by the drama.

"Come on, have a seat," Arjun said, this time holding my hand again and guiding me back to my place.

Chandni and Gauri followed, and we finally settled down.

"What do you want to eat?" Arjun asked as soon as our eyes met.

"Umm… noodles!" I said excitedly, my face lighting up.

His expression darkened.

"No. Eat something healthy," he said flatly, crushing my excitement.

"We will eat noodles. Right, Gauri?" Chandni shot back.

"Yes," Gauri agreed, her voice firm.

All the boys exchanged looks like they couldn’t believe this was happening.

I suddenly turned toward Gauri, noticing how she kept glancing at Rajveer while he spoke to the waitress.

A thought clicked in my mind.

Leaning close to her, I whispered, "Is he the guy you met in the library?"

She startled, turning to look at me.

Then, hesitantly, she nodded. "How did you know?"

I smirked. "It’s easy to read you."

Her cheeks turned slightly pink.

"So… are you two dating?" I teased.

"WHAT?!" She suddenly yelled, making everyone at the table turn toward us.

I immediately placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Relax, I was just kidding," I laughed.

She exhaled sharply and nodded.

As we discussed our courses, I learned that the boys had been in this university for four years.

This was their last year.

Or rather, their last seven months.

Soon, our noodles arrived, and I completely immersed myself in the food.

I noticed that Rajveer and Gauri as well as Sourav and Chandni were having small conversations.

But Arjun and I were silent.

"Can I get your number?" Sourav suddenly asked.

Chandni shot him a glare.

"What? Friends, right?" He grinned.

After a moment of hesitation, she finally gave him her number.

I bit my lip. Should I ask for Arjun’s number too?

As I reached for my phone—

I froze.

It was already in his hand.

He was typing something.

After a few seconds, he passed it back to me.

I looked at the screen.

A new contact was saved:

Arjun.

I rolled my eyes. Ever heard of privacy?

I should have put a lock on my phone.

But at least he made my task easier.

"We should leave now," Gauri said, checking the time.

I glanced at my watch—7:30 PM.

Our hostel closed at 8 PM, so we had to hurry.

"I’ll drop you," Arjun suddenly said, standing up.

We all looked at him.

"I mean, you three," he corrected himself.

We exchanged a few words with Rajveer and Sourav before leaving.

Outside the restaurant, we found Arjun’s car parked near the theater.

He walked over and opened the passenger seat door, looking at me expectantly.

I hesitated for a second before sitting inside and fastening my seatbelt.

Gauri and Chandni got into the back seat, while Arjun took the driver’s seat.

He started the engine and drove at a moderate speed toward our hostel.

As soon as the car stopped, both of my friends rushed out with the speed of light.

I quickly tried to unbuckle my seatbelt.

…But it wouldn’t open.

Why the hell isn’t it opening?!

I was struggling when suddenly—

Two strong hands reached over me.

I held my breath.

"Let me help," Arjun murmured, his eyes meeting mine.

I nodded slowly.

His closeness made me notice—his sharp features, his black eyes staring into my blue ones, and his lips—

"See you tomorrow,"

he said, pulling away.

I blinked.

"Yeah… good night."

Taking a deep breath, I opened the door and walked away.

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To Be Continued…

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