VIVANSH'S POV:

I noticed it the moment it happened. Not when he walked in. Not when he spoke. Not even when Avni turned toward him with that brief flicker of uncertainty in her eyes. It was the way he looked at her too long, too directly, like he wasn't trying to hide it. That's what made it a problem.

I stand at a distance now, the noise of the haveli settling into a low, meaningless hum around me. Conversations blend together, laughter rises and falls, movement fills the space but none of it holds my attention. Only them.

Avni is standing near the far pillar, her posture composed, her expression calm on the surface. But I can see it the slight tension in her shoulders, the way her fingers move unconsciously, the way her gaze shifts just a little too often. She feels it. Good. She should.

And Aaditya, he isn't even pretending. Leaning casually, one shoulder resting against the pillar, completely at ease, like this is just another evening, just another face, just another passing interest. But it isn't. Not to him. And definitely not to me.

My jaw tightens slightly, not enough to be noticed, but enough that I feel it settle into place. I don't move immediately. I don't interrupt. I observe, because that's what I've always done better than anyone else.

He tilts his head slightly, saying something to her. I can't hear the words from here, but I don't need to. I see the way she reacts polite, measured, not fully engaged. But she doesn't walk away. And that's enough. That's more than enough.

Aaditya has always been like this, testing, pushing, seeing how far he can go before someone stops him. The difference is, most people don't. I do. And I always have.

I straighten slightly, my hands resting loosely at my sides as I finally move. Not fast. Not urgent. There's no need for that. This isn't a reaction. This is a correction. By the time I reach them, she notices me first. Of course she does.

Her body still responds to my presence before her mind catches up. Her expression shifts just slightly, something unspoken passing through her eyes. Aaditya notices that too. His smirk deepens.

That's when I stop close enough. Not between them, but close enough to change the air. "Aaditya." His name leaves my mouth calm, flat. He turns his head toward me slowly, like he expected this. "Vivansh." No respect. No hesitation. Just acknowledgment.

My gaze holds his. "You're staring too much."

There's a pause small, but heavy. Avni goes still beside him. I can feel it without looking at her. Aaditya doesn't react immediately. Then he smiles. "She's interesting." The words are light, casual but deliberate.

My expression doesn't change. "You don't need to be interested."

He pushes himself off the pillar, standing straighter now, closing the small distance between us just enough to make the moment tighter. "Maybe I do," he says. There it is, that edge, that quiet defiance he's always had. It hasn't changed.

I tilt my head slightly, studying him. "No." My voice stays even. "You don't."

He exhales softly, almost amused. "You got married without saying anything," he continues. "Brought her here like she was already part of everything." His eyes flick briefly toward Avni before returning to me. "I'm just trying to understand why."

"You don't need to understand anything." I don't raise my voice. I don't step closer. I don't need to. The weight is already there. "Just stay within your limits."

The silence that follows isn't empty. It's filled with everything that doesn't need to be said. Aaditya watches me for a second longer. Then he smiles again, slower this time. "What if I don't?"

That's the line. That's the moment. That's where most people expect something loud, something aggressive, something obvious. But I don't move. I don't react the way he expects. Instead, I step forward just slightly enough, just enough.

My voice lowers. Not in anger. In certainty. "Then I remind you." A pause, short, precise. "The hard way."

His smile doesn't disappear, but it changes. Not gone just thinner. He understands. Of course he does. He always has. That's why he pushes because he knows exactly where the line is, and he wants to see if I'll redraw it.

I hold his gaze for one second longer, then I turn away. Because the conversation is over. I don't need to continue it. I don't need to prove anything. He's been reminded. That's enough. For now.

When I walk back to Avni, she's still standing there, her expression unreadable, but her body slightly more tense than before. Good. She felt it. She might not understand it fully but she felt it.

My hand finds her waist again, naturally, immediately, pulling her just a little closer to me. She exhales softly. "You're acting strange," she says quietly.

I look at her. "No." A small pause. "I'm correcting something."

Her brows pull together slightly. "Correcting what?"

I don't answer immediately. Instead, my thumb brushes lightly against her side-slow, controlled. "You don't realize how people look at you," I say.

She blinks, clearly caught off guard. "What does that mean?"

"It means I do." Her breath shifts just slightly enough for me to notice. "And I don't like it."

There it is. Not loud. Not dramatic. But real.

She looks at me differently now. Not afraid. Not exactly. Just... aware. "I wasn't doing anything," she says softly.

"I know." That's not the problem. That's never the problem.

My hand tightens slightly at her waist not enough to hurt, enough to remind. "But that doesn't change anything." She doesn't respond, because she doesn't fully understand yet. And that's fine. She doesn't need to. Not right now.

My gaze shifts across the room again, and I see him. Aaditya. Watching. Still. Not hiding it. Not backing down. Just watching. Our eyes meet. And this time neither of us looks away.

Good. Let him look. Let him think. Let him test whatever line he believes exists. Because I already know how this ends. My hand slides slightly higher along Avni's waist, pulling her closer against me, making the distance between us disappear completely. A silent statement. Not for her, for him.

She shifts slightly at the movement, her fingers brushing lightly against my arm, grounding herself without realizing it. I don't look down. I don't break eye contact.

Aaditya's expression doesn't change. But I see it , the understanding, the recognition, the warning. He knows. Of course he does. And still he doesn't stop.

That's fine. He doesn't need to. Because sooner or later. he will. I lean slightly closer to Avni, my voice low enough that only she can hear it. "Stay near me."

She glances at me, surprised by the tone. "Why?"

I don't answer that. Not fully. "Because I said so."

That's enough. For now.

The evening continues around us, people talking, moving, existing like nothing has shifted. But everything has. The air feels tighter, more aware, more controlled.

And as I stand there, my hand steady at her waist, my gaze locked onto the one person in the room who thinks he can test me, one thought settles clearly in my mind.

He can look.

That's not the problem.

But he'll learn.

Soon enough.

Some things aren't meant to be touched.