Chapter 1
The narrow lanes of old Lucknow were swallowed by a thick, velvety darkness. The only sound was thefrantic khat_ khat of Arham black heels striking the pavement.she adjusted her midnight-black abaya, the tiny pearls stitched into the fabric shimmering like fallen stars as she hurried,.
Ya Allah, why doesn't this alley end?" She whispered, her heart racing,Her phone buzzed violently.
It was Daniya
"Hello?Arhami, where are you? You
slowpoke?" Daniya's voice was loud
enough to echo. "The party started ages
ago! ○ our classmates are here except
you.
I'm coming, okay? I couldn't find a taxi
and it's pitch black here," Arham hissed in the phone."I told you let me send my driver!
Daniya groaned. "Wait..wait, what if I send my brother? He's nearby."she said in a mischivious grin.
Arham froze, " Shut up, Daniya. He's so rude and terrifying,"He's my brother, you drama queen!"Daniya laughed. 'Anyway, hurry up!"
The call cut.
Arham began to jog, her eyes searching for any sign of a main road,
"Taxi! Taxi!" She called out into the void.
Suddenly, the darkness was sliced open by the blinding LED headlights of a BLACK BMW Series 3. Before Arham could even blink, two more cars pulled up behind it, but they didn't aproach her.
Instead, they moved to the BMW and opened the door with practised precision. A man stepped out. He looked to be around 29 _ thirty, carved out of shadows and authority. Azaan Firoz Hamdani
He levelled a cold, sharp gaze at her, his face barely shown because of dim light, but his eyes, if anyone looked in his eyes, would surely can't look up."Get in the car.
Arham stood frozen."|-
"I said, get in the car, Miss Arham Zaidi, Azaan interrupted, his voice a low, gravelly command. "I don't have time for your tantrums.
Arham's mouth hung open. How does he even know my name? Then it clicked that he was Daniya's brother
Auth pove
. It's also because they barely meet with each other cause he always spend his time in the work office. Whenever she faces him, his facial expressions are always the same .
The Ru, de 'Ro ,ock she mumbled ,"Ice King.' She wanted to argue, to ask how he found her, but his presence was so overwhelming she couldn't find her voice.
Arhami, you tallk to walls, why can't you
talk to this man? she scolded herself;
murmuring under her breath, "Why is he
so stone_cold?""Did you say something?" Azaan asked, his brow arching: "No! Nothing! Why would 1 say anything?"
She squeaked
"Then let's go. "
As the guards moved to open the passenger door, Azaan raised a hand,
stopping them. In a move that felt completely out of character for a man, sorigid, he stepped forward and opened the door for her himself;
Arham stared at him in genuine shock.
OMMO" Azaan Firoz Hamdani is actually opening a door for a girl? I need a camera.No one will believe this.
She slid into the leather seat, the scent of expensive sandalwood fling her lungs as she closed the door, walked around, and took the driver's seat. He drove toward the Hamdani Mansion in a silence that felt heavier than the darkness outside.
The car ride was an exercise in pure torture for Arham. For someone who usually spoke at a rate of a hundred words per minute, the thirty minutes of heavy suffocating silence felt like three years.
She shifted in her seat, her fingers gripping against her black purse. If she didn't say something soon, she felt like her stomach would actually tie itself into knots But every time she glanced at Azaan, his jaw was set so firmly that he looked like a statue carved from obsidian.
He didn't even blink. He just drove-fast, precise, and cold. As the BMW finally glided to a half at the grand entrance of the Hamdani Mansion, the BMW's engine finally settled into silence with a low "vrrrmmm...," followed by a few soft "tick... tick... tick..." Sounds as the metal cooled beneath the hood.
that made Arham jump out. "
"Oh, finally!" She gasped, the words bursting out of her ○ a dam breaking. She didn't wait for a guard. She scrambled out of the car as if the leather seats had suddenly turned into a bed of thorns.
She needed air,
she needed noise, and most of all,
she needed to be away from the man who radiated the temperature of glacier.But as she stepped onto the lush green lawn, she realized she had jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.
A girl was standing under the bright,golden floodlights of the mansion in
The maroon dress was Daniya.
she was not just waiting; she was
Not just waiting but walking here and there with angry face, Clad in a stunning outit that sparkled under the garden lights, Daniya had her heels dug into the grass andher arms locked across her chest Hereyes were narrowed into slits, tracking Arham's every movement like a hawk.
watching with a confused face.
The silence of the lawn was even scarier than the silence of the car. Daniya didn't say a word, but her expression said everything: you are late, you didn't answer my last five texts .
Arham stood there, her beautiful pearl embroidered abaya fluttering in the light evening breeze, caught between the"Rock" behind her and the Hard Place" in front of her Daniya's eyes darted from Arham to her to her brother,
her anger turned into a mischievous grin. "Oh? So the "Rude Rock" actually found you She whispered in Arham ear, don't lie, you send him right?
No, " I didn't. Thanks to him that he took you and didn't leave you for the ghost of Lucknow. she "giggle." Shut up. "
Actually, I didn't find a taxi. It was so dark.." Arham started, trying to keep her voice steedy.
"Oh, I know. My brother is a hero, right?Wait until Mom hears Azaan actually did something nice, From behind them, Azaan's voice cut in, cold and clipped." I said to get inside,
not to have a press conference on the lawn.
Daniya laughed,
unbothered, and pulling
Arham toward the entrance," "Until. ""
She was in the dark alley," Azaan intercepted, his voice deep and devoid of emotion. his voice deep and devoid of emotion. He looked at Daniya, pointedly ignoring Arham as if she hadn't just spent thirty minutes in his car.
"keep-your
friends on a shorter leash, Daniya.
Lucknow isn't a playground at this
hour.
Arham felt her face flush. A leash? she wasn't a pet! She found her voice just as he started to walk toward the car, I didn't ask for a rescue, Mr. Hamdani.' she called out, her black heels clicking definitely on the marble path.
Azaan paused, his back to her. For a second, the air felt heavy, He looked back over his shoulder, his gaze sharp enough to cut through the humid night air.
"You didn't have to ask," he said coldly
"Now go inside
Daniya made an angry face and said, "You
I really dont know how to talk bro, let's go, Arham, please don't mind him. She said Arham couldn't help it. She paused, looking back one more time.
Azaan was still there, a with dark orbs
against the glowing mansion. His eyes
caught hers. He didn't smile: He didn't nod
He just maintained that intense, brooding
stare.
"Rock, Rude," she whispered
LET'S SEE WHAT Happend next 🤔
Thanks for giving time to my novel if you 😊
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