Anurag had just two months — two months to attract Siya towards him and heal the dents in his pride and ego. And he had found the easiest way to do that — Kabir. 🤓
During lunch break, Kabir was eating alone when Anurag came and sat at the desk opposite him. Kabir smiled and offered him his lunchbox, but Anurag declined. Siya was sitting right next to Kabir and couldn't help but say,
"Kabir, these rich people don't like to eat food from people like us... after all, he's a Chauhan. Eating someone else's food won't lower his status."
She said all this loud enough for Anurag to hear — and it worked. Anurag took the tiffin from Kabir and started eating, making sure Siya could see it.
Everyone's eyes were now glued to Anurag because it was widely known that he never ate anyone else's food.
The moment he took the first bite, memories of his mother's cooking flooded his mind — it tasted exactly like her food. Remembering his mother's image brought tears to his eyes.
Seeing Anurag cry, Kabir asked, "What happened, Anurag? Is it too spicy? I'll get some water." He handed Anurag his own water bottle — something Kabir never shared with anyone.
Anurag took a sip and returned it, saying,"Kabir, you never share your things with anyone. What miracle made the sun rise today?"
Kabir smiled and replied,"You remind me of my elder brother. Every time I see you, I think of him. That's why I treat you like one too."
Anurag stared at him in surprise. How could someone be this innocent? He was trusting a guy who was just trying to use him. He had only met Anurag two days ago and already considered him a brother. Truthfully, the sense of belonging he never felt at home — he had felt it in just two minutes with Kabir.
After finishing lunch, Kabir packed his tiffin and said,"Bro, my friends and I are planning to bunk school today. You're welcome to join."
Anurag looked at Siya and said,"But this madam will tell the teacher, won't she?"
Kabir tugged Siya's braid and joked,"We'll pack her in a sack and take her along. Don't worry!"
Anurag couldn't help but laugh at Kabir's antics, and Siya began scolding him while pulling his hair in return.
After lunch, Anurag, Siya, Kabir, Radha, and some of Kabir's friends all bunked school and went out to roam around. Throughout, Anurag intentionally stayed close to Radha and spoke to her sweetly.
This didn't go unnoticed by Siya, who kept telling herself,"Look how he's sticking to that monkey and laughing with her. With me, he talks like I'm a cactus or something..."
After roaming around the whole city, everyone went home. Just before leaving, Anurag shared his number with Radha in front of Siya, which made her fume with jealousy. He even complimented Radha:"Radha, you're really beautiful — very different from all the other girls here..."
Siya had always taken pride in her looks, which had only grown over the years. A big reason for this was that Aman ji and Chandrika ji constantly praised her — never pointing out any flaws. Even if Yamuna ji scolded Siya, Chandrika ji would defend her. Over time, Siya began believing she was special... but in truth, she was just an ordinary girl.
Siya, Kabir, and Radha were riding in the same car. Kabir sat in front listening to music on his headphones, and Radha kept smiling to herself. Siya would glance at her and look away, but eventually, she couldn't take it anymore and said,"What's up, Radha? You look very happy today."
Radha, savoring her moment, replied,"Why wouldn't I be, Siya? For the first time, someone praised me in front of you... made me feel beautiful. Now I know that someone out there gives me more importance than they give you. Remember what you said? That I don't even look like someone guys would glance at? Well, turns out that's not true — Anurag, such a handsome guy, is ignoring you and choosing me. Today I truly realized what inner beauty means."
Just then the car stopped at Radha's house. She got off, and Siya could only glare at her.
The moment Siya reached home, she threw her bag and stared at herself in the mirror. Talking to her reflection, she said,"No... never... Radha is not more beautiful than me. How could someone like Anurag prefer a girl named after cauliflower over me? She's nothing in front of me... I'll make you realize, Anurag Chauhan, that even you are nothing in front of Siya Prajapati... absolutely nothing!"
Auli, Uttarakhand
Aditya was bundled up in a blanket, taking notes, while Raghav was in the kitchen making sandwiches and coffee. Joy, their dog, was hopping around Raghav, who picked him up and said,"Joy, how many times have I told you to stay in the blanket during winter? You'll catch a cold again!"
Raghav wrapped Joy in a blanket and placed him next to Aditya. A while later, Raghav returned with sandwiches, coffee, and dog food, placing them in front of Joy and calling Aditya to the dining table.
As soon as they finished breakfast and got up, they noticed that Joy had ignored his dog food and shredded Aditya's notes with his teeth.
Aditya tried to pull Joy away, but the pup wouldn't let go of the pages. Raghav also tried to retrieve the notes from Joy's mouth, but the little dog kept batting Raghav's hands away with his tiny paws. Raghav gently stroked him and managed to take the notes out.
Aditya lunged for his notes, but it was too late — they were torn to bits.
Aditya yelled at Joy,"What did you do?! I had to submit these to Sir tomorrow! What should I say now — that a puppy ate my homework?!"
Joy cowered in a corner, scared — because Aditya wasn't just shouting, he was roaring, and his face had become terrifying in his anger. For a tiny pup, that was too much.
Raghav stepped in to calm Aditya,"Aditya, calm down... he's just a baby, probably made a mistake."
Aditya snapped,"A baby? He's everyone's dad at this point! And I always used to joke with Jiten Sir that a goat or dog ate my notes — and now it actually happened!"
Raghav took the notes and said,"Give me this — I'll rewrite them. You go out. If you stay here, you'll wreck the whole house."
Aditya looked at Joy, who was sitting in a corner, scared and staring at him. Aditya grabbed his jacket and shoes and stormed out.
As soon as he left, Joy came out and began jumping again. Raghav gently cupped Joy's cheeks and said,"What did you do, huh...? The poor guy worked all night on these notes, and you tore it all in two minutes... this is really bad, Joy. You shouldn't trouble others like this."
Joy nodded as if he understood everything and started running around Raghav again. Raghav got busy rewriting the notes.
Late at night, when Aditya returned, Joy was asleep, but Raghav was still writing. Aditya looked at Joy, so innocent and peaceful, and felt guilty for yelling at him. He was just a naive little creature.
Seeing him, Raghav said,"Oh, so Mr. Late finally decided to return?"
Aditya replied,"Raghav, go to sleep now — it's really late."
Raghav:"Oh, so now you're worried about me? What about the dozen missed calls I made?"
Aditya checked his phone — it was on silent. He hugged Raghav from behind and said,"Sorry, babu, I didn't see the calls."
Raghav pushed him away playfully,"Don't go calling me 'babu' or 'shona', okay?"
Aditya tugged his cheeks,"Okay, shona..." and ran off to hide under the blanket on the bed.
Raghav looked back at him and then quietly resumed his work.