—SOHINI'S POV—
I was falling in love with Vedant Khanna everyday, little by little.
I mean, how could I not?He was perfect—the good looks, that towering height, those abs sculpted by the gods. And to top it off, he was exactly my type—a daddy who looked like he needed fixing.
But the problem? He looked at me like I was a kid. A little sister, even. It sucked.
Each day, I pushed through math problems just to impress him. I dreamed about him.
I listened like a fangirl as he talked about stars, galaxies, and the planets he observed through his telescope. His passion for astronomy—how he was working on an astrology-based app—had me swooning.
"An app about love and astrology?" I snorted once, laughing. "That's absurd."
"I think it's brilliant," he replied, raising a brow at me. Then he ruffled my hair. "Shh. Get back to studying. You've got exams coming."
"I'll pass. Why worry?" I shrugged.
"'Passing' isn't enough. Get 90%," he said firmly, arms crossed. All serious.
"You sound like my papa right now," I teased.
"I'm different."
Yes, I thought. You're the daddy.
"If you get 90%, I'll treat you to whatever you want."
"Whatever I want?" I asked again, my mind immediately going dirty. Could I ask him to fuck me? I smiled to myself.
He nodded. "Promise."
"Pinky promise," I said, holding out my little finger.
He laughed and curled his finger around mine. Game on.
From that day, I had a mission.I studied like a possessed demon—during meals, while showering, even while pooping.
And then exams came—a month of pure torture. And went. And I did well. Maybe even enough to hit that magical 90%.
On the day of my last paper, Vedant showed up to pick me up.
He leaned against his car in jeans and a graphic tee, casually scrolling through his phone. My classmates practically froze. Some stared like he was a K-drama star.
Others whispered like middle schoolers with a crush.
"Who is that? Your boyfriend?" one girl giggled as he waved at me.
"Not yet," I winked. "But soon."
"I'm so jealous—he's so hot. Rich too?"
I just laughed and ran to him like an excited puppy.
"You're here?" I beamed.
"It's your last exam. I thought I'd take you out," he said, ruffling my hair. "Ice cream, coffee, or pizza?"
I put on a thinking face. "Ice cream."
"Come on, madam," he said in a fake French accent, opening the door. "Your wish is my command."
At the ice cream parlour, I ordered a sundae the size of my head. He stuck with a rich chocolate Magnum bar.
As I happily devoured mine, I caught him staring.
"What?" I asked, cheeks puffed.
"I'm taking a bite." He scooped some of my sundae despite my dramatic protests.
"You need to grow up. Aren't you like—forty?"
"Call me daddy then," he shot back with a smirk.
I rolled my eyes, trying to hide my blush. If only he knew how many times I've called him 'daddy' in my wet dreams.
Then—he reached out, thumb brushing my lips to wipe off a bit of cream.
The way he did it? Slow. Confident. Casual. But it left me breathless. Blushing.
Later that night, I found myself standing outside the Khannas' door again. Don't judge me—I needed to see him.
Before I could even ring the bell, the gate creaked open and Lata aunty's familiar face appeared, glowing with that ever-so-warm smile.
"Sohini!" she exclaimed, beaming as if I were her own daughter. "Exams over?"
"Finally!" I sighed, stepping in. "Like surviving a war zone and finally getting parole."
She chuckled, stepping aside to let me in. "Come in, come in. Let me guess—you're here for Vedant?"
I cleared my throat, faking a casual tone. "Uh, yeah—had a few doubts from today's paper. Wanted to clarify."
Lata aunty nodded knowingly, pointing upstairs. "He's in his room. Go on up."
I mumbled a thanks, my heartbeat going rogue as I climbed the stairs. Okay. Breathe. You're not here to flirt. You're just gonna casually confess your undying love. Casual stuff.
I didn't knock—I never did. The door creaked open, and I stepped inside—and promptly forgot how to breathe.
There he was.
Vedant.
Shirtless. On the floor. Doing push-ups.
Each movement made the muscles on his back ripple like waves. Sweat glistened along his spine, trailing downwards in sinful little drops. My eyes involuntarily followed them.
Holy. God. He looked like a Greek statue.
"Are you done staring?" he said without looking up, voice annoyingly calm for someone who had just made my ovaries scream.
I blinked rapidly, my ears burning. "I-I wasn't staring."
"Mmm." He smirked, getting up and reaching for a black tee.
I turned away dramatically. "You could've warned me before looking like a Calvin Klein ad."
"You could've knocked," he said, pulling the shirt on. "So? You here to cry over math again?"
I waved my hand in surrender. "God, no. Math and I are done for now."
He raised a brow. "Then what brings you here, Sohini?"
His voice softened slightly—just enough to make it dangerous. I swallowed, meeting his eyes.
And I wanted to say it. I really wanted to say it. "I came to tell you I love you," would've been the brave thing to say.
Instead, I blurted, "I—wanted to see your telescope!"
Silence.
He stared. "My—telescope?"
"Yeah!" I pointed at the window corner like it was the most fascinating object on Earth. "I was bored, and you always talk about planets and stuff, so—"
He blinked, a little skeptical. "You've never cared about astronomy before."
"Well, maybe I'm growing as a person," I said, arms folded dramatically. "Trying new things. Expanding my horizons."
He chuckled under his breath and walked to the telescope. "You're ridiculous."
"And you're sweaty," I muttered, following him.
He adjusted the lens, squinting through it before stepping aside. "Here. Take a look."
I bent down, peering into the eyepiece—and gasped. "Wait—is that—Saturn?"
"Yep. That little halo? Those are its rings. You're looking at a planet that's 1.2 billion kilometers away."
"Whoa—" I whispered.
Vedant stood next to me, his voice low. "Space has this way of humbling you. Makes you realize how tiny we are—and how much we still don't know."
He talked more—about stars collapsing into black holes, how light from dead stars still glows, how every element in our body was once stardust.
I didn't understand all of it. But I listened like it was a lullaby I never wanted to end.
The room was dim. His voice was soft. His presence—impossibly close.
"Vedant sirr—" I turned to face him.
He met my gaze, brows slightly lifted.
"There's something I—"
Creaaak.
The door opened.
"Vedant beta—oh!" Lata aunty stood awkwardly at the door. "Sohini, your father's here. He's downstairs—and he looks—rather upset."
My blood ran cold.
I rushed down, heart pounding—and there he was. My father. Standing outside, jaw clenched, eyes furious.
"Papa," I said, forcing a smile. "You're home early?"
He didn't answer. He grabbed my wrist and yanked me away from the Khannas' doorstep.
Vedant followed, concerned. "Good evening, uncle. Sohini was just—"
My father cut him off. "Her exams are done. She doesn't need your tuition anymore."
"She wasn't here for tuition," Vedant said calmly. "She wanted to look at—"
"I don't care what she wanted," Papa snapped. "Just tell me—how much do I owe you for these 'lessons'?"
Vedant looked baffled. "I'm not charging anything."
Papa pulled out his wallet. "Here's five thousand. Take it. And stay away from my daughter."
I opened my mouth, panic setting in. "Papa, it was me—I just—"
"Shut up, Sohini!" he hissed. "I'll deal with you at home."
He dragged me down the road as Vedant stood there, stunned and silent.
My love story had ended before it even began.
Once inside, Papa's voice thundered through the house.
"You were in his room?! With a divorced man? At night?"
"We weren't alone!" I lied. "We were just looking at stars—"
"I don't want to hear another word!" he snapped, pointing at my mother. "This is what happens because you never scold her!"
Maa flinched but didn't speak.
He turned to me, breath heaving. "From now on, you're not going near that man. Or any man. You're grounded. Do you hear me?"
I could only nod, blinking away tears as I backed into my room.
Hours passed.
And I sat curled up by the window, hugging my knees, staring across the street.
The light was still on in Vedant's room.
I wished I could rewind time—just five minutes. Just long enough to say a few words—
'I have feelings for you Vedant Khanna.'