:maybe you don't like talking too much about yourself, but you should've told me you were thinking 'bout someone else

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third person's p.o.v:

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Sitting on the ground, his back rested against the steel shelves as he looked at the deep red that oozed out of his palm and the multiple pieces of glass still stuck in them.

After all this while... Why?

It's not like she cared anyway, so why couldn't I just get her off my mind!? He thought.

Her laugh. Probably the very first thing that made him fall in love with those siren eyes, that absolutely intellectual personality behind the most perfect exterior. 

Everything about Saisha just screamed perfection, radiance. It's like she was made to make people fall on the ground and worship her each step. Like she was made for him to fall in love with her.

Tears blurred his vision as he thought of their times together, of the times he spent with her, wishing and hoping for it to last.

"You left."  she whispered,

"That's your excuse?"

A sharp hiss escaped his lips as he found himself fisting his hand furthermore making the glass dig deeper into his palm at the memories of their last conversation back in their hometown. 

How could she blame it all on hi--

His chain of thoughts came to an abrupt halt the moment he felt the door to the janitor's room slowly push open. A slight ray of hope built itself within his heart as he hoped to find the reason behind his heartache to enter from the other side. Only for it to be crushed.

He looked at those familiar doe-like eyes, that curiously searched across the room, as her head popped from the side of the door, slightly peaking in. 

Why can't she just leave me alone? A part of him thought as he looked at the tiny frown that adorned itself in the middle of her brows before she simply shook her head.

Wait, she's leaving already?

It was times like these that made Rohaan question his own sanity. Didn't he just say he wanted to be alone? The duality was killing him.

His duality was killing him.

Sitting at the very far end corner of the room behind a few shelves, was enough to provide him all the alone time he demanded from the world, yet here he was, just wanting to be noticed, despite his 'so-called' claims of wishing to be left alone.

Grabbing the nearby mop he couldn't help but make it fall on the ground the moment he noticed the door about to be shut and slightly smiled, right when it stopped. 

'Exactly,'

Stepping into the dim room, Ziya couldn't help but trace her eyes around. It had been an hour since the whole cake-cutting and she couldn't help but notice the disappearance of the only man who had caught her attention.

Adjusting the bag on her shoulder and holding a single slice of cake on a paper plate in her hand, she slowly entered to room, when her eyes finally caught the familiar-looking features.

Ziya let out a quiet gasp and her eyes widened at the sight of blood as she hurried to the far end of the room, dropping to her knees before him. Her heart thudded loudly in her chest, and she was filled with terror as she observed his bloody hands. With trembling hands, she slowly reached out to assess the extent of the damage. 

"What the hell happened!?" 

Rohaan didn't answer, he couldn't as he looked at the way shards of glass covered the floor like a minefield, glinting ominously under the dim ceiling light, his hands dripping with blood and his face was a mask of pain and anger, while he tried to hide his agony.

"How on Earth, Rohaan!?" He couldn't help but look at the distressed expression that was plastered upon her face, as she clearly didn't seem like someone who was used to seeing blood around. A part of him wanted to ask her to calm down while the other couldn't help but sadistically cherish the moment of being cared about, even if it's temporary, even if it's just for a change.

"It's nothing," He whispered, his words coming out softer than he had intended them to.

Keeping the paper plate away, Ziya couldn't help but examine through her bag as she randomly threw stuff out of it, hoping to find something that could even minutely soothe him. 

"What is wrong with you? How the hell does one even manage to hurt themselves like this, and why on earth are you just sitting here away from everyone, you should've just gone to the goddamn infirmary you- you dumb fucking dunderhead!" A part of him just wanted to laugh at how panicked she got just by looking at someone else breath while the other couldn't help but be amused.

Is this an act?

"Right! Come on! Let's go to the infirmary okay? You'll be alright!" She muttered quickly as she tried getting up only to be stopped by his next words.

"I'm not going nowhere."

"Yes. You are." He didn't miss the way her features hardened but it was true, he couldn't even feel the pain anymore.

"No,"

"Yes, you are Rohaan. I don't care."

"I'm not going, Ziya." he pressed making her sigh,

"Fine! I'll just go and call your best friends then!" 

"No Ziy-"

"Since you only seem to listen to Varun and Saish! I'll get them right her--"

"Ziyanah, I fucking said no!" 

A shriek escaped her mouth even before she could stop it as she felt her body slightly be jerked forward, her face inches away from his, while he froze at his action instead. 

Shit.

A small gasp escaped her lips as she looked at the hand that had grabbed her wrist, hard enough to make her slightly scream at the sudden piercing hurt. Rohaan didn't mean it. He didn't mean to shout those words at her in the first place, forget wrapping his glass-struck palms around her soft and delicate wrist instead. 

A small breath his escaped her lips the moment he immediately pulled his hand back, eyes zooming at the specs of blood that wrapped around her wrist now instead. 

"I-I'm- sorry i-I didn't-"

"It's fine," she muttered softly, her jaw clenching as she gave him a tight-lipped smile.

Rohaan could feel his temperature rise as he looked at the wound he had created, the pain he had caused.

A human brain and its complexities are by far the most difficult to comprehend. It is crazy how more often than not.

Hurt people, hurt people.

And it's not just about the wound. Ziyanah looked at the figure in front of her, his eyes clearly stating how apologetic he was, guilt spreading all across his features.

"Ziya I'm so--"

"Zee?" his words stopped the moment that familiar voice echoed from the other side, immediately snapping his attention away from his wrongdoings to the wrongs that had been done to him instead. 

She smiled as she picked up the first slice moving it towards Varun, right before her eyes met mine. I could hear my heartbeats fasten the moment she placed half of the cake in his mouth, before leaning forward and closing her mouth on his.

His jaw clenched, and his halm involuntarily reaching out to the person sitting in front of him, calling for her attention away from the unanswered door.

Ziya looked at the soft touch on her better hand as he gently pulled her closer making her breath hitch.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, his words soft, calculative, perfectly aware of the effect it had on her.

Her mouth opened and closed as she studied the man in front of her, sometimes he was so warm and gentle and then there were other times where his coldness was just so... numbing.

"I-it's fi--" "Zee-" 

ziyanah's pov

"I-it's fi--" "Zee-" Words didn't entirely escape my mouth when I heard Saisha's voice call from behind, and the sound of the door to the janitor's being open and footsteps approaching us reached my ears, immediately making me snap my head towards the direction, when all of a sudden out of the blue, I felt a hand being placed right under my chin and turning it towards themselves. 

A small gasp escaped my lips as I looked at Rohaan and how close his face was to mine. 

"Thank you," he whispered before continuing "You look cute by the way," As if the compliment wasn't enough my eyes widened out of surprise the moment he slowly leaned forward and before I know, the feeling of his cold yet soft lips being placed on my warm skin clouded my mind. I felt my eyes shut at the soft kiss that he placed at the corner of my lips, so gentle, so delicate...

"I-it's fi--" I managed to stutter, my words hanging in the air, abruptly cut short by the sound of- "Zee?" Saisha's voice behind me. The door to the janitor's opened, and the echo of approaching footsteps startled me, causing me to turn my head in that direction when suddenly, a hand slipped beneath my chin, gently guiding my gaze back to the person before me.

A soft gasp escaped my lips as I found myself staring into Rohaan's eyes, his face mere inches from mine. "Thank you," he whispered, his voice barely audible, before adding, "You look really cute, by the way." His words sent a shiver down my spine, and before I could comprehend what was happening, he leaned in closer. My breath hitched as his cool, yet soft lips tenderly caressed the warmth of my skin, placing a delicate and gentle kiss right at the corner of my lips, leaving me with nothing but the sound of my wild beating heart.

Holy shi-

"Ziyanah,"

I heard  Saisha say and before I know I quickly pushed Rohaan away creating a good distance between us making him chuckle and my cheeks turn a deep shade of red, before i turned back to Saisha.

"I-"

"What the hell happened to you?" I heard her jit, her voice devoid of any emotion, she sounded, mad? I looked at the way her eyes glared at Rohaan and then at his wound before she turned on her heel.

"We're going to the infirmary, Malik." She said, no scratch that, stated. "Right now."

Was the last words that came out of her mouth, the authority in her voice being worth a bow.

"I know right, I've been telling him the sa--" My words stopped and my eyebrows rose the moment I looked at the man on my side immediately get on his feet and follow Saish like some lost pup, without a single word. 

Wow.

I looked at the door being shut behind his back as a weird feeling stuck at the back of my throat. Shaking my head I looked at the piece of cake that I had bought with myself, inspecting it for any glass pieces before I simply shoved the piece inside my mouth finally getting up on my feet. 

Pulling the door open, I felt my eyes widen the moment my eyes met with an extremely empty corridor and a deep blue shade of sky outside the window.

Fuck

Quickly jogging to the room we cut the cake in, my eyes skimmed around in search of my belongings only to find none. 

Great. My phone is in my bag.

Purrfect.

Cursing under my breath, I fastened my footsteps jamming onto the button of the elevator, waiting, as I mentally made a note to never leave my phone alone and also to make sure that my so-called friends don't leave me either, ughh.

My ears perked at the ding of the elevator, as its doors opened and just as I was about to enter, my eyes met those familiar pair of greys, that stared back at me with those same absolutely 'un-understandable' and nonchalant eyes, making a soft chuckle escape my lips at his tired eyes and an immediate cheeky grin spread across my lips. 

"Heyylou thereee," I said in the most cringe worth, hair-pulling, mind-boggling screechy voice and tone I could muster, watching the muscle on his jaw twitch as he slowly shut his eyes, clearly too used to my 101 how to bare with an annoying ass ritual by now, before he passed a single nod my way.

"Firefly,"

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end of chapter / 13