Winter had set in once more.
The atmosphere was cool, mornings shrouded in mist, and Patna streets seemed quieter than before.
During the holidays, I and Krishanu used to spend most of our time together — just hanging around, playing games, studying a little, and discussing the future.
He met Jaanvi less frequently now.
It wasn't on purpose — it just… happened.
But distance has a way of altering people, even when no one intends it to.
---
Their fights began small at first.
Nothing serious. Missed call here, curt reply there.
But gradually, it began becoming more routine — not screaming or drama, just an exhausted tone, cold silence.
It wasn't the kind of fight couples have.
It was the kind that meant something was dying slowly between them.
---
When vacation was over and classes started, Krishanu looked off.
He'd stand out the window, gazing outside for longer periods, or just get lost in his thoughts while we were talking.
We asked him what was wrong.
He smiled weakly and said,
"It's nothing."
I thought it was because I was leaving soon, so I tried to have a good time.
"Hey, man, don't worry about me. In the new school, I won't put up with any bullying this time."
The group went quiet for a second. Then Krishanu suddenly burst out laughing.
"Yeah, right. You'll just complain to the teacher immediately."
I turned red. "No, idiot! I'll beat them down on my own this time!"
We all laughed together.
For a moment, it felt like everything was fine again.
But that peace was just the silence before the storm.
---
A week before the final exams, everything broke.
Jaanvi found Krishanu after class.
She was standing there, face inscrutable, her tone calm.
"It's over between us," she said.
Krishanu stiffened. "What?"
"It's over," she said again, unhesitatingly.
He blinked, not sure if he had heard her correctly. "Wait—what? What happened? What did I do? Tell me what I did wrong—"
Jaanvi rolled her eyes in frustration. "You really don't know, huh? You don't even realize what you did?"
He moved closer, getting desperate. "Jaanvi, please, if I said or did anything—"
She shoved him away, voice shaking with rage.
"Don't make me laugh, Krishanu. You always speak of Mayank. Of your friends. Of everything but me!You never had any time for us anymore. It was all studying, competing, or discussing school."
Her words struck him like chilly rain.
He stood there, frozen, hands trembling.
At last, he barely breathed,
"Mayank's leaving. I just wanted to hang out with him before he leaves. That's all.
But she just scoffed.
"Stop making excuses."
And then, before he could say anything else, another voice cut through the air.
"What's going on here, Jaanvi?"
A boy stepped forward — tall, confident, with that careless smirk people wear when they think they've already won.
Krishanu turned, confused.
"Who are you?" he asked.
The boy put an arm around Jaanvi casually.
"Me? I'm Ravi. Her current boyfriend."
Krishanu's heart stopped for a second.
He stared at Jaanvi — desperately, pleadingly hoping it was some sort of cruel joke.
She wouldn't look at him.
"It's nothing, Ravi," she whispered. "He's just my ex-boyfriend. I just broke up with him."
Ravi laughed.
"Oh, you're the ex who got dumped?"
That stung more than any blow Krishanu had ever endured.
He didn't rage, didn't struggle, didn't even respond.
He simply stood there — gazing at them, his uneven breath, trembling eyes — as the howling of winter wind filled everything else to silence.
---
Later, when I came to know about it, I couldn't believe it.
Krishanu, who once seemed invincible, had finally cracked for the first time.
And none of us had even a hint of it coming.
That winter was not only cold.
It froze something deep inside him forever.
---
To be continued…