5 AM – Hotel Parking Lot
Rudra leaned against the car door and asked, “So… what time will you be back?”
Saaniya, already seated inside, replied, “I’ll be back soon. Probably by 10. Until then, take care of everything here.”
Rudra smiled playfully.
“Yes, ma’am. Your wish is my command! I’ve stood by you until now, and I always will. You can trust me on that.”
Saaniya shot him a sharp, judgmental look and said sternly, “Mr. Malhotra, you should really take some classes on how to be a professional.”
Rudra lowered his gaze but smiled faintly, a heartbreaking smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.
“But I don’t want to be professional, Saaniya. Tell me something… are you tired?”
Saaniya turned away, avoiding his gaze. But Rudra’s smile stayed, unshaken — as if it belonged to some hero who had forgotten how not to smile.
With a weary sigh, she said, “Tiredness and stopping halfway… those aren’t written in our fate, Mr. Malhotra. People like us… we just have to keep going until we finally shatter into pieces.”
Her eyes were hard, emotionless. Rudra’s smile stayed, but his gaze dropped as if mocking himself.
Seeing this, Saaniya asked quietly, “Mr. Malhotra… I’ve never asked you this before, have I?”
Rudra looked confused. “Asked me what?”
“Do you ever get tired of helping me?”
Rudra answered without a second’s hesitation.
“No. I could never get tired of it — and I never want to. You have no idea, Saaniya… you and I, we’re the same. And that’s exactly why I want to keep helping you. I want you to get what I never could. Maybe that way, I’ll finally feel like I’ve received what I’ve been searching for all along.”
Saaniya let out a small bitter laugh.
“Are we really the same? No, Mr. Malhotra. I’m just like a—”
“A monster,” Rudra cut in, finishing her sentence.
Saaniya froze. That was exactly what she was going to say.
Rudra put his hands in his pockets and smiled softly.
“Everyone has a past, Saaniya. I have mine too. You just don’t know it — that’s the only difference. For my father, I was a monster… until his very last breath. I’ve yearned for his love, just like you’re yearning to give your friend a happy future. But unlike you, I never succeeded. So yes, I want you to succeed. Maybe that’s the only way I can show my father — wherever he is now — that I was never a monster.”
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Saaniya looked at him with empty eyes, but this time, for the first time, she couldn’t find the usual fakeness she always saw in him.
Starting the car, she said, “To be honest, I never really trusted you. Your eyes always told me you were a fake. But today… you seem real, Rudra. Let’s give it everything we’ve got — to prove that we were never monsters. No matter how much it breaks us.”
With that, she drove away. Rudra stood there, watching her car disappear.
Ruhi’s voice suddenly echoed in his mind: “Why do you keep lying, Rudra? Are you scared that if you speak your heart, people will hate you?”
He had only looked at her silently that day, refusing to answer. She had lightly hit his head and said, “At least be real with the ones who matter to you — like Saaniya and the others! If you keep hiding forever, they will never see who you really are.”
Back then, he hadn’t understood her words. Today, he did.
He stepped out of the parking lot, looked up at the sky, and said softly, “Dad… I’m human. Just a normal man who people like, who people love. I’m not a monster… and I never was.”
One bright star seemed to glow even brighter. Rudra smiled faintly and started walking back — only to stop midway.
Standing near the hotel gate was Ruhi. She wasn’t alone — a young man stood next to her.
The man was wearing a mask. Rudra’s smile faded.
“Who’s that?” he muttered to himself and walked toward them.
Ruhi froze the moment she spotted him.
The man beside her asked softly, “What happened?”
But before she could answer, Rudra was already standing in front of them.
“Up so early?” he said casually. “You wake up earlier than the sun… or did you not sleep at all?”
The masked man spoke up, “Ah… I called her. That’s why she woke up and came to pick me up. You must be Ruhi’s friend?”
Rudra glanced at Ruhi and smiled faintly. “Friend? Not really. I just know her. She’s a friend of a friend. And you are?”
The man removed his mask and extended his hand.
“Rahul. Ruhi’s elder brother.”
Rudra shook his hand, smiling — but a thought flashed in his mind.
So… it was his phone that was stolen. The messages Ruhi received were from that same stolen phone.
“Shall we go?” Ruhi asked quietly. “You must be tired, bhai. I already booked a room for you here.”
Something about her tone caught Rudra’s attention — she sounded calmer than usual.
Ruhi began to walk Rahul toward the hotel rooms, and Rudra followed behind them.
“So… whose friend are you exactly?” Rahul asked as they walked down the corridor.
“I’m everyone’s friend!” Rudra replied with a childlike grin. “But to answer properly — I’m friends with Aditya and Aniket.”
“Oh, I know Aditya,” Rahul said with a nod. “He’s my sister’s boss.”
Something about Rahul’s mature tone impressed Rudra.
Their conversation flowed naturally as they reached Rahul’s room. Rahul, usually calm and collected, couldn’t help but chuckle at Rudra’s innocent, almost childlike way of speaking.
Standing at the door, he said warmly, “You speak so well.”
“Like the hero of a storybook?” Rudra asked, tilting his head with wide, innocent eyes.
Rahul laughed softly.
“Yes. Exactly like that. Are you staying here today?”
“Not sure,” Rudra replied. “Why?”
“Ruhi has the day off. We were planning to go watch a movie. It would be fun if you and your friends joined. I’d also like to meet Aditya again — I only met him once before. But only if you guys have the time, of course. I wouldn’t want to bother you.”
Rudra smiled. “I’ll ask and let you know. What time are you planning to go? And which movie?”
“After I get some rest — around 10 or 11. We’ll just pick something good playing nearby.”
“Alright then. I’ll confirm and get back to you.”
With that, Rudra left.
Rahul turned to Ruhi. “Do you think Aditya will be free to join us today?”
“Why do you want to meet him, bhai?” Ruhi asked curiously.
Rahul only smiled and patted her head.
“That’s a secret between me and him, little one. You don’t need to know just yet.”
Ruhi nodded quietly as Rahul went inside.
She took a deep breath and whispered, “You’re worried about something, bhai… that’s why you came here. I know that. But why do you want to meet Aditya sir?”
Ruhi wasn’t worried about her brother’s sudden arrival — she was worried because she saw concern in his eyes for her. She hated being the reason for his stress.
Meanwhile
Ruhi seemed unusually calm in front of Rahul, while Rahul himself seemed like a good person… but Rudra couldn’t help wondering: Was this his true face? Or was there something more?
