The day after their silent encounter in the corridor passed like any other.

Except it wasn't.

Anvi sat in class, eyes fixed on the blackboard, pretending to scribble notes.

Professor Aarav stood by the window before starting the lesson, holding a piece of chalk, then turning around. His gaze swept across the room until it paused-just for a heartbeat-on her.

She didn't look up.

She couldn't.

Author's POV:

Some silences are louder than words. They pierce deeper. Cut cleaner.

Anvi had drawn her lines, painfully. Aarav had respected them, reluctantly.

And now, they both existed within the same space, carrying conversations that never made it to their lips.

---

"Open page 154. We'll begin interference patterns today," Aarav announced, clearing his throat.

Anvi flipped the pages, but the diagrams blurred before her.

Waves. Amplitudes. Frequencies.

All she could think of were the frequencies between two hearts-how sometimes, despite being on the same line, they still missed syncing.

"Who can explain constructive interference?" he asked.

A few hands went up. Anvi stayed quiet.

His eyes lingered a second longer on her, then he nodded to another student.

---

Lunch break.

Anvi walked slowly to the back gardens behind the school building. Her usual place. The bench under the neem tree. The spot that knew her secrets better than anyone else.

She sat, unwrapped her tiffin, stared at the untouched food. The wind played with the corners of her dupatta.

She closed her eyes for a second too long.

And that's when she heard footsteps.

She didn't need to turn to know who it was.

Aarav.

"May I sit?" he asked.

She opened her eyes. Looked up.

He wasn't wearing that authoritative 'Professor Sen' expression.

He looked... human.

She nodded wordlessly, shifting slightly to make space.

---

They sat in silence for a minute.

Then he said, "Mujhe pata hai tum mujhse dur ho gayi ho."

She kept her gaze on the tree trunk ahead.

"Mujhe yeh bhi pata hai ki main kuch bolta to us din... shayad sab kuch badal jaata."

That made her turn.

Her eyes were sharp, filled with disbelief.

"Lekin bolte toh kya, Sir? Ki aap bhi feel karte ho? Ya phir sirf itna ki aapko regret hai ke maine kuch mehsoos kiya?"

He sighed.

"Main confuse tha, Anvi."

"No," she said firmly, "Aap clear the. Aapne kaha tha-main aapki student hoon. Aur aap chaahte hain main aage badhu."

Her voice cracked, just a little.

"Main waise hi kar rahi hoon, Sir."

She stood up.

But his next words stopped her.

Author's POV:

Some confessions are never said aloud. But they echo through the air between two people.

Aarav had been holding back for too long-not just for her, but for himself.

And Anvi? She had already given him everything without expecting anything in return. Except maybe... a truth.

---

"Anvi," he said, standing too, "Main teacher hoon... yeh main bhool nahi sakta. Lekin main insaan bhi hoon. Aur kabhi kabhi... emotions line ke rules nahi maante."

She stared at him.

He continued, "Main tumse distance bana raha hoon... kyunki mujhe lagta hai tumhara bhala isi mein hai. Par iska yeh matlab nahi ki main kuch mehsoos nahi karta."

There. He said it.

Anvi's throat tightened.

"Phir aap mujhse dur kyun ho gaye?" she whispered. "Jab main chhup gayi... aapne dhoondhne ki koshish kyun nahi ki?"

"Kyuki agar main dhoondhta... to tum mil jaati. Aur agar tum mil gayi... to main khud se haar jaata."

Silence.

She blinked quickly to push away the wetness threatening to spill.

Then... slowly... she smiled.

Not out of happiness.

But because for once, his truth matched her pain.

---

The bell rang in the distance.

Lunch break was over.

"Chalein?" he asked gently.

She nodded.

And they walked back-side by side.

Not as student and teacher.

But as two broken edges of the same page.

---

That evening, Anvi opened her diary again.

> "Aaj woh paas tha. Itna paas ki uski saans ki garmiyo ko mehsoos kar sakti thi.

Par ab main chahti hoon... ke main uske dil mein hoon, uski aankhon mein nahi.

Sirf nazdeek hona kaafi nahi hota.

Kabhi kabhi... dooriyon mein bhi rishton ki sachchai chhupi hoti hai."

---

Author's POV:

Every bond has a language.

Some use words.

Some use glances.

And then there are those like Anvi and Aarav-whose entire relationship exists in pauses, hesitations, and incomplete sentences.

They don't need declarations.

They need courage.

But the world they live in?

It doesn't allow such courage to breathe freely.

Yet somewhere...

Somewhere, the heart continues to hope.

And the story continues to unfold...

---

To Be Continued...