The morning sun filtered gently through the curtains, casting a warm glow over the Deewan mansion. Veeresh stood near the door, a small, neatly wrapped box in his hands — the cake he had gone out of his way to get. Chocolate, her favorite.

Poornima, humming softly as she arranged her books on the table, looked up and her eyes widened when she saw the cake.

> “Veeresh! You remembered!” she exclaimed, a bright smile lighting up her face.

He said nothing, simply set the cake on the table and watched her reactions carefully.

> “Here,” she said after a moment, picking up a fork and feeding him a piece.

Veeresh took it, his expression neutral, but the taste lingered — rich chocolate, sweet, and somehow even sweeter because she was feeding it to him. Inside, a strange warmth bloomed, but his face remained stoic.

> “You enjoyed that,” Poornima said softly, teasing, her eyes sparkling as she leaned back. “But you won’t show it, will you?”

Veeresh froze. For the first time, someone had read him so clearly.

> “How… do you know?” he asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.

She giggled, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

> “You don’t hide anything from me anymore, Ruby,” she said playfully, then smiled wider and kissed his cheek. “Thanks.”

Before he could respond, she ran off to play with his pets, laughter ringing through the room. Veeresh’s eyes followed her, dark, intense, and thoughtful. Slowly, his hand went to his cheek, where her kiss had landed, touching it gently as if memorizing the warmth she left behind.

But then a thought pierced him — sharp, painful, and unrelenting.

> What if she leaves me?

What if she finds someone better, smarter, kinder than me?

The thought tightened his chest. His obsession, his control, his carefully built world — all of it felt fragile now, as if her happiness and freedom could slip away in a single moment.

Veeresh remained there, standing in the quiet kitchen, the faint smell of chocolate and home-cooked food around him, watching his Ruby play, laughing, living — and realizing, perhaps for the first time, how much she already owned his heart.