Monday returned with sharp edges.
The kind of morning that pretended to be ordinary while quietly setting traps.
---
Aara stepped into Rathod Industries with a steady breath. She had promised herself she wouldn't let emotions dictate her professionalism. Whatever Kabir Rathod was to her—intimidating, confusing, unsettling—he was still her mentor in this space.
She kept her head high and walked toward her desk.
The office felt different.
Too quiet.
Too controlled.
---
Kabir was already inside his cabin, eyes fixed on the city below. He had arrived earlier than usual.
Sleep had not come easily.
Rahul's words from the night before echoed in his mind, but Kabir ignored them. He had made a decision.
Distance wasn't working.
Avoidance wasn't working.
If Aara was pulling away, he needed to understand why—without forcing her.
That restraint cost him more than violence ever had.
---
Mid-morning, Aara was called into Kabir's cabin.
She hesitated only a second before knocking.
"Come in."
Kabir stood behind his desk, posture composed, voice neutral.
"Sit."
She did.
"This is about the project," he said, sliding a file toward her. "I want your analysis."
Relief flickered through her.
Work.
Safe ground.
As she spoke, Kabir listened intently—not interrupting, not commanding. Just watching the way her mind worked, the clarity in her words.
"You're sharp," he said quietly. "You should trust that."
She looked up, surprised.
"Thank you, sir."
For a moment, the air softened.
Then shattered.
---
Kabir's phone buzzed.
Once.
Twice.
He glanced at the screen.
His expression hardened.
"Wait here," he said, already moving toward the door.
Aara frowned.
She hadn't seen that look before.
---
Downstairs, security tightened within minutes.
Rahul intercepted Kabir near the elevators.
"Not here," Rahul warned under his breath. "This isn't the place."
Kabir didn't slow. "It followed me here."
"What did?"
Kabir stopped.
"Underworld doesn't knock," he said flatly.
Rahul's jaw clenched.
---
Back inside the cabin, Aara sensed something was wrong.
Voices outside.
Tension.
She stood, heart racing.
The glass wall suddenly felt too transparent.
Too exposed.
---
Minutes later, Kabir returned—controlled, composed—but something darker clung to him.
"I need you to leave early today," he said.
Her brows furrowed. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No," he said immediately. "You didn't."
Then, softer— "I won't let you be uncomfortable here."
That choice of words unsettled her.
"Sir… what's happening?"
Kabir met her eyes.
For the first time, he hesitated.
"Nothing you need to worry about," he said.
Aara didn't believe him.
---
As she packed her things, Kavya texted:
Office okay? I've got a bad feeling.
Aara typed back: Same.
---
Outside, as Aara waited for her cab, she noticed a black SUV parked across the street.
Engine running.
Windows tinted.
Watching.
Her instincts screamed.
She stepped back.
That was when Kabir appeared beside her.
"You're not taking a cab," he said calmly. "You're coming with me."
Her pulse spiked. "Kabir—sir—"
"This isn't a discussion."
She froze.
Then he lowered his voice.
"Please."
That word—soft, rare—undid her resistance.
---
Inside the car, silence pressed in.
Kabir's eyes stayed on the road.
"Who were they?" Aara asked finally.
"No one," he replied.
She turned toward him. "That's not true."
He didn't answer.
---
After dropping her home safely, Kabir waited until she was inside before driving away.
His phone rang immediately.
"Clean it up," he said coldly. "Quietly."
The line went dead.
---
That night, Aara sat beside her mother, unease coiled tight in her chest.
"Maa," she asked softly, "what do you do when someone protects you… but scares you at the same time?"
Meera held her hand.
"You don't ignore the fear," she said gently. "Fear is a message."
---
Across the city, Kabir stood in a dim room filled with men who didn't ask questions.
"They were testing boundaries," one said.
Kabir's voice was calm.
"And now they won't."
---
The wall Kabir had built between his worlds had cracked.
Aara hadn't seen the darkness yet.
But she had felt it.
And once darkness is felt—
It never stays hidden for long.