Forcibly Yours

RUHANIKA'S POV

The next few chapters are going to be all about love and romance, but after that, brace yourselves—things are about to take an emotional turn. Keep the tissues handy!

Dheer had been oddly quiet since dinner. It wasn't the calm, composed quiet he usually projected; it felt more like a brewing storm, and it was unsettling.

I glanced at him as he drove. His usual steady pace had increased, making me grip the edge of my seat. He didn't look at me once; his jaw was tight, and his hands clutched the steering wheel as if it were the only thing keeping him in control.

Great. Now I was stuck in a car with this brooding silence and these stupid pin curls clawing at my scalp all evening. Enough was enough.

These pin curls had been torturing me all night. Ugh, it was time to go back to basics. 

It's Time to return to my original look.

Thanks to Shruti's expert photography skills, I had already taken a thousand pictures of this hairstyle. Mission accomplished. Now, it was time to free my scalp.

Just as I was about to undo the pins, the car stopped.

My hands froze mid-movement, half-stuck in my hair, as I stared ahead in shock. My life was flashing before my eyes.

I could almost see death in front of me—Yamraj's uncle in his traditional vehicle. "I'm coming. Just a little longer."

But before I could fully embrace my fate, a warm, firm hand gripped my arm, holding me in place. The threat of death vanished like a magician's disappearing act.

Dheer's hand. His annoyingly perfect hand.

I let my hands drop from my hair, and the curls cascaded to my waist, staging a dramatic exit as if they were in a Bollywood film.

"Sorry," he said, leaning over to check my forehead, which had nearly kissed the dashboard. His voice was soft, but that didn't stop my inner monologue from yelling.

"SORRY?! Pehle bata dete ki stunt practice karni hai!"

"It's okay," I mumbled, still trying to figure out if I was alive or if this was the afterlife. "But why—"

Before I could finish my sentence, he dropped the bomb on me.

"Ruhi, can I kiss you?"

WHAT?!

For a second, I thought I'd misheard him. Maybe he said something else? But nope, his intense gaze told me otherwise.

His cheeks had a faint red hue to them, Is he blushing?

"At least let me complete my sentence first!" I blurted out, trying desperately to shift the focus before my brain short-circuited completely.