Keifer's POV
By the time we finally left the sweet shop, every single one of us was carrying at least one box.
Some people were carrying three.
Looking at Percy, I was pretty sure he had bought enough sweets to feed an entire village.
"For emergencies," he explained seriously.
Honey stared at him.
"What kind of emergency requires twelve rasgullas?"
"The kind I respect."
Nobody argued with that logic.
---
The sky above Kolkata had begun turning orange and gold.
Streetlights flickered on one by one.
The city looked completely different now.
Warmer.
Softer.
Almost magical.
We decided to walk for a while before heading back to the mansion.
Or at least that was the plan.
The actual result was Section E getting distracted every twenty seconds.
---
"Denzel, stop buying food."
"I'm not buying food."
"You literally have food in your hand."
"This is different food."
---
Meanwhile, Rosie had become everyone's favorite person.
Which wasn't surprising.
The kid was adorable.
Unfortunately, it was getting late.
Krish checked the time before looking at Eces.
"We should drop Rosie home first."
Rosie immediately frowned.
"No."
Everyone laughed.
---
Rosie crossed her tiny arms dramatically.
"Didi, main aapke saath chalungi."
(Didi, I will go with you.)
Eces crouched down.
"Nahi. Abhi ghar jaana hai."
(No. You need to go home now.)
Rosie looked unconvinced.
"Par mujhe maza aa raha hai."
(But I'm having fun.)
Krish sighed.
"Mujhe bhi maza aa raha tha jab tak tum meri baat maan leti thi."
(I was having fun too until you stopped listening to me.)
Rosie gasped.
"Betrayal."
Even Eces laughed.
---
Eventually, after promises of another visit and several dramatic goodbyes, Rosie finally allowed Krish to take her home.
Before leaving, she waved enthusiastically at everyone.
Then pointed at me.
"Daraawne bhaiya bye!"
(Bye scary brother!)
The entire group burst into laughter.
Again.
I wasn't even defending myself anymore.
---
After Krish and Rosie left, the rest of us continued walking through the evening streets.
The atmosphere became lighter.
Relaxed.
Comfortable.
No schedules.
No destinations.
Just friends enjoying the city.
---
Jay slipped her hand into mine naturally.
Like she always did.
I glanced down.
She smiled.
"Tired?"
"A little."
"You've been walking all day."
"So have you."
"That's different."
She laughed softly.
"How?"
"Because you're my wife."
Jay rolled her eyes.
"That makes absolutely no sense."
"It makes perfect sense."
I pulled her a little closer.
She bumped her shoulder against mine.
And stayed there.
---
A few steps ahead, Keiren was excitedly talking about everything he wanted to do tomorrow.
"Ate, are we going to see more temples?"
"Maybe."
"What about markets?"
"Maybe."
"What about historical places?"
"Maybe."
"What about—"
"Keiren."
"What?"
"Take a breath."
---
The group laughed.
Even Keiren.
Though only after dramatically pretending to be offended.
---
As we walked, I noticed something else.
Or rather...
Someone else.
Keigan.
---
At first, I thought I was imagining it.
Then I started paying attention.
And suddenly it became impossible not to notice.
Whenever Eces laughed, Keigan looked over.
Whenever she spoke, he listened.
Whenever someone else walked beside her, his eyes followed automatically.
Particularly one person.
Krish.
---
Earlier, whenever Krish had been standing beside Eces, Keigan's shoulders had tightened.
Not enough for anyone else to notice.
Enough for me to notice.
And now?
Krish wasn't even here anymore.
Yet Keigan still kept glancing toward where Eces walked with the others.
---
I smirked.
Poor guy.
He had absolutely no idea how obvious he was becoming.
---
Jay noticed my expression.
"What?"
I nodded slightly toward Keigan.
Her eyes followed.
A second later, realization appeared on her face.
Then came the smile.
The knowing smile.
"Oh."
"Yeah."
"Oh."
"Exactly."
---
A few feet away, Keiren noticed too.
Which was unfortunate.
Because Keiren having information was always dangerous.
He immediately moved beside Keigan.
The grin on his face already spelling trouble.
---
Keigan saw him coming.
"Don't."
"I didn't say anything."
"You were about to."
"I was literally breathing."
"Menacingly."
---
Jay laughed so hard she nearly stumbled.
I caught her automatically by the waist.
She looked up at me.
Still smiling.
And for a second, everything else faded into the background.
The city.
The crowd.
The teasing.
The noise.
---
Just her.
---
"You know," I said quietly.
"What?"
"I think today might be my favorite day so far."
She tilted her head.
"Really?"
I nodded.
"No danger."
"No drama."
"No running."
"No one trying to kill anybody."
"That's a very low standard."
"I've learned to appreciate the little things."
---
Her laughter echoed through the evening air.
And honestly?
I could listen to that sound forever.
---
By the time we finally reached the vehicles waiting to take us back to the mansion, everyone was exhausted.
Feet hurt.
Shopping bags were everywhere.
Sweet boxes were stacked in laps.
Keiren was still talking.
Percy was checking his reflection in a car window.
Section E were arguing about which food had been the best.
And Jay was leaning comfortably against my shoulder.
Happy.
Safe.
Exactly where she belonged.
For the first time all day, I looked around at everyone.
My friends.
My family.
The people who somehow managed to turn every ordinary outing into complete chaos.
And as the cars pulled away from the glowing streets of Kolkata, carrying us back toward the mansion, I found myself hoping tomorrow would be just as peaceful.
Though judging by Keiren's excitement, Section E's energy, and Keigan's increasingly obvious feelings for Eces...
I highly doubted it.
---
Some time later, the questions started immediately.
"What's Lord Shiva about?"
"Why the snake?"
"Why does he look calm and dangerous at the same time?"
Eces answered everything patiently.
Like a teacher who had already expected this chaos.
Keiren stayed glued to her.
"Ate this… Ate that… Ate explain again…"
Jay leaned slightly into me, whispering, "She knows everything."
I smirked. "I'm starting to think she planned the entire universe too."
Jay laughed softly.
---
Dinner was light.
Finally.
Because if it wasn't, half of us would've exploded after street food.
We all sat down again.
Same chaos. Different location.
Section E was already joking.
Percy checking his reflection in the spoon again.
"Why do I look distorted?"
"Because it's a spoon," Honey said.
Keiren still watching Eces like she was a documentary.
Keigan pretending not to watch her.
(He was failing.)
---
And Jay—
She was just eating.
Happy.
Carefree.
Like nothing in the world existed except her food.
I leaned closer.
"Careful, Jay… you might make me jealous of the food."
She looked at me, cheeks already puffed, and glared playfully.
"Oh please."
Then she took another bite.
On purpose.
I laughed. "Wow. Betrayal."
She nudged me. "You started it."
---
The room was full of laughter.
Noise. Teasing. Random arguments.
For a moment—
Everything felt light again.
No tension. No heavy past. No threats.
Just us.
Just chaos.
---
Eventually, everyone finished eating and started dragging themselves back to their rooms.
"Goodnight!"
"Don't die!"
"Wake me up if there's breakfast!"
Doors started closing one by one.
And the mansion slowly quieted down again.
But this time—
It didn't feel heavy.
It felt… alive.
Once the door to our room closed behind us, the world outside disappeared. Jay leaned against me immediately, sighing softly.
"You okay?" I murmured, brushing a strand of hair from her face.
She nodded, but her eyes told me she wanted more than just reassurance. I took her hand and drew her closer, feeling the warmth of her body press against mine.
We sat on the edge of the bed, and she rested her head on my shoulder. I wrapped an arm around her, pulling her snugly against me.
Her fingers traced lazy patterns over my chest, and I could feel her soft breaths against my neck. I leaned down, brushing my lips gently against hers. Her lips parted, soft and inviting, and I kissed her with a tenderness I reserved only for these quiet, private moments.
My lips brushed her jawline.
She let out a soft gasp ," Keifer.... "
The whole night went out as a blur , voice of her moans , my own growls and the voice of our bodies colliding with each other.
Third Person POV
Far from the bright chaos of Kolkata's streets, where laughter and noise refused to sleep, there existed a place untouched by warmth.
A dim room.
One flickering lamp.
And two men sitting in silence thick enough to suffocate.
Kaizer tapped his fingers against the table, impatience crawling under his skin.
"We still can't track them," he muttered, voice edged with irritation. "Every move we make… they slip."
Across from him, the man from India remained still, his face half-hidden in shadow.
"That's not coincidence," he said quietly. "That's control."
Kaizer scoffed. "Control? They're just moving around the city."
The man's gaze sharpened.
"No," he replied. "They're moving under protection."
The flame flickered.
For a moment, the room felt colder.
"As long as Eces is with them… or Krish," he continued, "you won't get close. Not even by mistake. You try, you fail. Again and again."
Kaizer leaned forward, jaw tightening. "Why? What makes them so untouchable?"
A pause.
Then—
"We're in Kolkata," the man said, his voice low but heavy. "This is her ground."
Kaizer didn't respond.
So he continued.
"People here know her. Not just by name. By reputation. By what she's capable of."
His fingers tapped slowly against the armrest.
"And wherever she goes… she doesn't leave gaps. No blind spots. No weak links. You think you're hunting them—"
A faint smirk touched his lips.
"—but you're the one walking into her territory."
Kaizer leaned back, unimpressed.
"She's just a girl," he said, almost bored. "I've dealt with worse."
Silence.
Then the man's eyes lifted, cold and certain.
"That's your first mistake."
The lamp flickered harder.
"You're underestimating her."
Kaizer's smirk returned.
"We'll see."
But the man didn't smile back.
"You won't," he said quietly. "Not if you keep thinking like that."
A beat passed.
Then Kaizer's tone dropped, darker now.
"Fine. If we can't reach them directly… we find a way around."
The man didn't answer immediately.
Because he already knew—
This wasn't going to be simple.
Not here.
Not against her.
---
Outside, Kolkata breathed.
Lights flickered across crowded streets.
Voices rose and fell.
Life moved forward, unaware.
Eces and her group laughed, walked, lived freely—
Unaware that somewhere in the shadows, eyes were watching… waiting.
Planning.
Because this wasn't over.
Not even close.
And the real danger?
It wasn't loud.
It was patient.
+++++++++++++++
Enjoy the first one..
Spoiler : Exploring Kolkata - Howrah Bridge , Victoria Memorial, Prinsep Ghat, Eden Garden ...