Ved's P.O.V,

"Take care"

I drove away from the hostel gate, heart thumping steady but strong, glancing back once at the light where Sanskriti slipped inside.

but as I drive home with stars shining bright through the windshield, my heart feels heavy and full of hurt.

I like Sanskriti so much,her sweet laugh by the river, her blue dress looking so pretty, her big dreams to be a doctor they make me feel alive and happy inside.

But when I recall the group rules it stops everything.Naren Sahay, our leader, says no love or romance is allowed.We must focus only on helping needy people who need food and medicine, and fighting those bad ministers and greedy merchants who hurt everyone.

She thinks I am just a simple poor scholar who likes to help others.She does not know about my rich family or the secret dangers i face. That is good for now.It keeps her safe. But every time I see her smile or hear her talk, my heart beats fast and I want to tell her how I feel.

What if she finds out the truth? What if she sees the walls I build to hide my life? Or worse, what if the bad guys from our fights learn about her and try to hurt her because of me? The thought makes my chest tight and my hands shake on the wheel.

I feel happy near her, but scared all the time. The group needs me, and I can't let feelings get in the way. No more dreaming like this. From now on, I'll just be her good friend. I won't tell her about my feelings,ever.That way, she stays safe, and I do my duty .

_______________________

A month passed quietly, like pages turning in a forgotten diary.Sanskriti's classes began in earnest, filling her days with endless lectures on various subjects,her desk buried under notes and the medicine books Ved had gifted.

She immersed herself completely topping quizzes, joining study groups, racing to the canteen only for quick chai between dissections.

Hostel routines took over late-night revisions by hostel library,laughter with Mona over shared headaches and sending letters home boasting perfect scores to keep Ma happy.No time for riverside dreams or blue satin dresses tucked away.

Yet,in stolen quiet moments staring at the ceiling after lights out, or tracing flower sketches in her notebook.Ved's face crept in, stirring a deep ache.His soft smile during chai, the way he'd listened to her poems without rush, those gentle answers about rivers... But she was still thinking about the silence?

He knew her hostel address,could have left a note or appeared at the college gate like before, but nothing came.No accidental library glances,no wildflower stems by her hostel door.

Doubt whispered ,Had she imagined the warmth? Was he just kind, nothing more?

Mona shrugged it off"Boys get busy, give it time".

but the missing grew sharper, pulling at her heart.

Ved kept his distance, honoring the vow he'd made under the stars. Naren Sahay's group demanded everything dawn missions smuggling rice,food and blankets to flood-ravished slums,war suffered areas,tense nights shadowing a corrupt merchant gobbling village lands, every step a brush with danger under the no-romance code.

His father's sprawling business tugged harder too overseeing warehouse shipments, balancing ledgers in the dim study of their grand hidden home, wealth a secret burden he carried alone.

Sanskriti's bright eyes haunted his rare pauses, her laughter a forbidden pull, but duty won.No contact meant no risk to her, or his double life.

While in Kuru,

One night it was Atharva and Shaurya's turn to scout. Atharva crept ahead quietly.Suddenly, a shot fired bullet struck his arm. He fell back, clutching the wound as pain shot through him.Shaurya pulled him behind cover fast.

Shaurya immediately held him tight and dragged Atharva back to camp through the shadows, dodging any pursuit. Atharva gritted his teeth against the pain, blood soaking his sleeve, but trusted his brother's strength.Back at camp, the team rushed to patch him up under lantern light.

The doctor arrived swiftly, stabilizing Atharva's arm wound with quick stitches and bandages under the camp's dim lights. He grimaced through the pain but gave a weak thumbs-up, insisting he was tough enough to stay in the fight. Shaurya stayed by his side, relief mixing with worry as the team planned their next move.

Atharva pulled Commander Vikram aside right after the bandage was secured, his royal pride firm despite the pain. "Commander, hide this from my family no word of the shot reaches the palace. Father and my grandmother must not know it would cause panic.

Vikram stood rigid, eyes sharp, and gave a curt nod. "It's Your decision and it will be respected."

While in Rajgarh,

Missing their friends deeply after months apart, Yuvansh and Devika decided on the spot to visit Atharva and Shaurya at the Kuru camp.

Yuvansh and Devika arrived at the Kuru camp under the cover of dusk, their car kicking up dust on the rugged path.

They approached the heavily guarded Kuru camp at dusk, but entry wasn't easy strict patriot protocols meant thorough checks at the gates.They waited patiently in a small enquiry room outside the main building, their documents were being carefully examined and questions answered under watchful eyes.

Shaurya and Atharva were surprised as well as worried when they heard Yuvansh and Devika had come to meet them.Atharva's fresh injury made him fret over how to hide it without raising alarms.

While Shaurya pulled Atharva aside before they entered the main building, eyeing his bandaged arm with concern. "Don't hide it anymore, brother you've recovered much now and look fine.Yuvansh and Devika are friends and we shouldn't hide this from them."

[It had been a week since Atharva's injury from the shot.]

A few minutes later, Atharva and Shaurya arrived in the enquiry room ,slipping past security.

The moment Yuvansh and Devika saw Atharva in the enquiry room, their eyes locked on his bandaged arm,he wasn't looking as good as he used to, pale-faced with the arm slung low, moving slower from lingering pain.

"Atharva, what happened?!" Devika gasped, rushing forward as Yuvansh's face tightened with worry.

Atharva noticed their stares on his bandaged arm and smirked sarcastically, striking a dramatic pose with his good hand on his hip. "Oh please, this? Just the universe's way of saying I look too good,had to throw in a 'battle scar' for the aesthetic.Jealous yet, or should I get matching ones for you all?"

Shaurya jumped in to lighten the mood, flashing a cheeky grin at Atharva's bandaged arm.

"Hey, don't mind this drama king his arm's fine, just jealous it can't high-five like mine anymore. Yuvansh, Devika, he's been strutting around camp like it's a trophy.Who's got snacks to celebrate his 'survival'?"

Atharva rolled his eyes playfully, shoving Shaurya."Shut it, you and your jokes are worse than the wound."

Yuvansh chuckled, and Devika smiled, the worry fading into laughs.

Shaurya finally dropped the banter, his expression turning serious as he glanced at Atharva's pale face and slung arm. "Alright, enough jokes the truth is, during our night scout last week, a sniper grazed him bad.Bullet tore through, but he's tough; stitched up and mending now."

Yuvansh's jaw tightened, Devika's eyes widened with concern, and Atharva sighed, no more deflections left.

Atharva broke the heavy silence with a sarcastic eye-roll as the group turned serious around him. "Wow, pity party for me? I'm fine, folks just a flesh wound to add to my collection. Next you'll knit me a scarf and sing lullabies."

As the mood lightened from Atharva's sarcasm, he seized the chance to divert attention, turning to Yuvansh and Devika with a grin.

"Enough about my bandage fashion show what about you two? Spill on your life updates anything intresting happened in college? Don't hold back!"

Devika smiled and told them simply, "Yuvansh got a side role in a romantic movie. He forgot his lines while filming in front of the camera."

Yuvansh winked at her playfully, reciting a cheesy line. "My heart beats for you alone..." He laughed as everyone chuckled.

Shaurya grinned wide and teased Yuvansh right away. "Forgot your lines in a romance? What, too busy staring at the heroine's lips? "

Yuvansh fired back at Shaurya with a grin, pointing at him. "Here comes out the mute man, whoz surprisingly talking a lot today!"

Devika burst out laughing at the back-and-forth, her eyes sparkling as Yuvansh turned to her with a smooth line. "Laugh all you want, sweetheart your smile's the only script I never forget."

Shaurya groaned playfully, Atharva smirked, and the light mood held strong.

They spent two hours chatting and laughing in the enquiry room before dinner time hit. After a quick camp meal together, Yuvansh and Devika bid goodbyes, heading to the nearby guesthouse camp rules were strict, no overnight stays for outsiders.

Atharva and Shaurya waved them off, then walked back to their room, the night air cool around

them.

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