Nysa's POV

Can I tell you something?”

Kritika whispered as we stood outside the cafe, the heat of late afternoon clinging to our beautiful dress.Her voice carried a strange urgency.

Kritika — Apurv’s batchmate. Confident, sharp-tongued, and the kind of girl who knew everything about everyone.

“What?” I asked, half-distracted.

She glanced around and then leaned closer. “Aayub. He likes you.”

I froze.

Aayub — also a third-year MBBS student. Confident, sociable, the kind of boy who spoke like he already owned every room he walked into.

Before I could even react, she added, “He’s been asking about you for days. told your friends, told me, told the rest of our group too. And honestly, it’s kinda obvious. He stares every time you’re around.”

I felt my stomach twist.

Not because I was nervous.

But because I wasn’t.

Because the only name my heart reacted to… wasn’t his.

Just then, as if fate decided to test me, Aayub appeared at the corridor turn. He walked over confidently, like this moment had been rehearsed a hundred times in his head.

“Hey Naysa,” he said, voice smooth. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

I didn’t blink. I didn’t wait.

“I have a boyfriend,” I said — cold, flat, final.

The silence that followed was thick.

Kritika’s eyes widened. A few others around us stopped mid-conversation, surprised — because I was the quiet girl. The sincere one. The one no one ever associated with secrets or sudden declarations.

Aayub blinked, caught off guard. “Oh… I didn’t know.”

“You weren’t supposed to,” I replied, forcing a smile that didn’t reach my eyes.

He gave a small nod and walked away, awkward and silent.

But the whispers started almost instantly.

“Did you know she had a boyfriend?”

“Who is he?”

“Since when?”

“She doesn’t even talk to anyone like that!”

Kritika stayed beside me, quiet for a while. Then she said softly, “You didn’t have to lie. Aayub’s not bad. He’s loyal. And honestly, he’s ten times better than Apurv.”

I didn’t answer.

She went on, “Apurv’s a flirt. He may be good at studies, but he doesn't value emotions. Aayub said he even saw Apurv ignoring a girl after getting her number. He said he’s cold, self-centered—”

“I don’t want to hear it,” I cut her off.

Kritika paused. “Why?”

Because I didn’t believe it.

Because no matter how many flaws they listed,

no matter how many reasons they gave me to forget him,

my heart still whispered his name like it was a prayer.

He hadn't looked at me twice.

Hadn’t spoken a word.

Hadn’t noticed the way I stopped breathing every time he passed by.

But I wasn’t ready to let go.

Because the feeling he left behind wasn’t logic. It wasn’t sense.

It was madness — and sometimes, madness doesn’t need reasons.

So I lied about the boyfriend.

Not to protect myself from Aayub.

But to protect myself from hoping Apurv might ever feel the same.

And even in that lie, I knew…

My truth was still wearing his name.