ABLAZE.✔️

Chapter 17. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑩𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒔.

Third Person POV.
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Scene 1: The Fracture Behind the Smile

The cafeteria had been loud, the clatter of trays and laughter still ringing in Falak's ears. But now, the corridor was silent. Empty.

Except for her.

Falak stood there, her back pressed against the cold stone wall, the echo of Pari's voice still cutting through her skull.

"Oh come on Saksham, don't act so distant. You didn't seem to mind my hands last night..."
"Right, Pearl?" Pari had purred, her mocking gaze grazing Falak while her fingers curled around Saksham's wrist.

Falak's fists had clenched beneath the table then. She'd tried to laugh when Naina cracked a joke. She'd tried to listen to Shubh's story. She'd tried.

But her heart hadn't moved. It was bleeding.

Tears blurred her vision now as she stood alone in the corridor — her chest heaving with emotions she never asked to feel.

"I hate him," she whispered. "I hate him so much..."

She didn't hear the footsteps until a voice broke the silence.

"Falak?"

It was Shubh.

Concern etched across his soft face as he approached, "Hey...what happened?"

She shook her head and looked away, biting her lip hard. "Nothing. I'm fine."

"Don't lie to me," he said quietly, gently holding her shoulders. "I've seen the way you shrink every time Saksham enters the room. And today? You didn't even touch your food."

Falak closed her eyes.

"I saw what Pari did..." Shubh said, his jaw tightening. "And what he allowed. It's not okay, Falak."

That's when she broke.

Tears fell. Her voice cracked.

"He let her touch him... even when I was right there. He knows what she did... what he did... and he still—" she couldn't finish. Her breath hitched violently.

Shubh pulled her into a hug.

"You don't deserve this," he said. "Not from him. Not from anyone."

And somewhere nearby, in the shadows of the hallway — a figure stood silently.

Saksham.

His face was unreadable. But his fists were clenched. Tight.

He hadn't meant for this to happen. Not this.

He wanted jealousy. He wanted a reaction.
But what he saw was her pain.

And Deep.

Touching her again.

His Falak. In someone else's arms.

He turned and walked away, the rage in his veins boiling like a volcano ready to erupt.

Scene 2: Dorm Corridor – Night

The girls' corridor buzzed with chaos. The hottest boy of The Elites Academy, Dehradun, had arrived.

Saksham Singhal stood there, framed by the low golden lights. Clad in black, eyes darker than the night sky, he walked with the grace of a king — untouchable, unapologetic.

Girls whispered. Some dared to squeal. Most just stared.

Beside him, Karan Khanna laughed, flirted with two junior girls clinging to his arms.