The next morning, the sun returned to Chennai's skies, bright and unapologetic, as if the storm had never happened. But for Karthik, the echoes of the previous evening still lingered. The softness of Ananya's fingers in his, the way her voice cracked when she said she felt invisible—it all sat heavy on his chest.
At school, things were oddly normal.
Ananya greeted him with a casual, "Hey, partner," and a wink, but there was something beneath it. Her smile was too polished, too perfect.
During English class, Karthik couldn't concentrate. The teacher was discussing metaphors, but all he could think about was how much Ananya hid behind metaphors of her own.
He passed her a note:
"Are you okay?"
She glanced at it, then at him, and scribbled back:
"I'm always okay. That's my thing."
But he didn't buy it.
Later during lunch, he found her on the terrace, sitting on the ledge, swinging her legs. It was a spot few visited, a quiet place above the chaos.
"You're avoiding me," he said, settling beside her.
"I'm avoiding everything," she corrected with a small laugh. "Don't take it personally."
"I want to know who you are when you're not being okay."
She turned to him slowly, her eyes unusually vulnerable. "Karthik, have you ever felt like you had to be two people all the time? One for the world, and one just for yourself?"
He nodded.
"My parents think I'm perfect. Teachers love me. Juniors look up to me. But sometimes… I just want to stop performing. Just for a day."
"You don't have to perform with me," he said gently.
She didn't reply immediately. Then she said, "You know why I liked you from the beginning? Because you didn't expect anything from me. You never looked at me like a trophy."
Karthik blinked. "You liked me?"
Ananya laughed, brushing her hair back. "Don't get cocky."
"I'm already writing a romantic poem in my head," he teased.
She groaned. "Don't ruin the moment."
He smiled, watching the breeze catch her hair. "I mean it though. You can be the real Ananya around me. Even if the real you cries. Or gets mad. Or isn't perfect."
She turned to him. "And you, Karthik… don't hide either. I want to know the you that you're scared to show."
Silence settled again, this time warm.
Down below, the school's afternoon bell rang. But neither of them moved.
They sat together on that ledge, no longer hero and heroine in someone else's tale—but just two teens trying to be real.
Trying to understand what it meant to be seen.
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End of Chapter 48