My first day of college felt like a dream.

After years in an all-girls school, stepping into a co-ed campus felt like opening the door to a new world. Everything looked bright, new, and full of possibilities. I laughed more than I expected, made friends I never imagined I’d make, and for the first time, life felt… exciting.

Maybe too exciting.

Innocence slowly turned into curiosity — the thrill of having crushes, catching boys staring, exchanging smiles across the classroom. I wasn’t a bad girl, not really… but college slowly changed me. And I liked that version of myself.

Everything was going just fine — until he appeared.

One random evening, a message popped up on Instagram.

“Hi. I know you.”

I froze.

Who was he?

Was he from school? No, impossible — all girls.

From my college? Maybe… but I had never seen him.

Curiosity won, as always.

“Hi. How do you know me?”

His reply came within seconds.

“I see you every day in front of your gate.”

My heart skipped.

How?

So I asked if he was from my college, and he replied:

“No, I’m from the college beside yours. I’m not a creep or anything… your profile came in suggestions, so I messaged.”

And just like that — without meaning to — I got attached.

A few chats turned into conversations that made me smile at my phone like an idiot. It was that phase of life where attention feels like love, and love feels like magic.

Then one day, he texted:

“There’s an emergency at home. I won’t be able to message for 2 days.”

My stomach dropped.

I didn’t know him well… but I worried anyway.

I texted him again and again —

“Is everything okay?”

“Hope nothing bad happened.”

“I’m here if you need anything.”

No reply.

Not that day.

Not the next.

Not even after I tried calling.

I hated how worried I was.

And then — out of nowhere — a notification:

“Hi.”

Within seconds, I typed back:

“Where were you? Why didn’t you reply? Do you know how worried I was?”

His answer came calmly.

“Sorry. My mom met with an accident. I was at the hospital… I was tired and didn’t see your messages.”

Guilt hit me like a punch.

“No… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have shouted. I didn’t understand.”

“It’s okay,” he replied. “It happens.”

I asked about his mom, and he said she was recovering. Our conversation turned soft again —

Did you eat?

How was your day?

Goodnight.

That night, I slept with a smile I hadn’t felt in a long time.

But before I closed my eyes, one question echoed in my mind:

Why does my heart feel warm every time I talk to him?

What is this tingling inside me?

Love?

Attraction?

A simple crush?

I didn’t want to label it.

I just wanted to feel it.

The next morning, I woke up excited — something I hadn’t felt in years. I texted him good morning before I even brushed my teeth. At college, we chatted nonstop. Still, I had never seen him, and he had never seen me — not properly.

We both wanted to meet, but… we were too shy to say it.

So we continued texting every single day.

Until one day… everything changed.

To be continued.

I never knew that something so small could destroy a piece of me.

The rumours began before I even heard them.

All I knew was that one day I walked into class and suddenly everyone stared at me differently — like I was a joke only they understood.

But it all began much earlier… with a stupid game.

We were playing Truth or Dare. I picked truth.

Someone asked, “Who looks good in our class?”

I didn’t think it was a big question, so I answered honestly.

> “Maybe… Aarav.”

And the game moved on. We laughed. We talked. It was nothing.

Or so I thought.

No one knew about the one talent I kept close to my heart — writing letters.

I could write to anyone: a crush, a celebrity, or just a friend.

Only one girl knew it… and once again, I trusted the wrong person.

One letter slipped out of my bag. Someone found it.

They decided it must be a love letter — for Aarav.

That was where it all began.

Suddenly the story changed:

“She gave him a love letter.”

“He rejected her.”

“She’s obsessed with him.”

“She has a hardcore crush.”

I wasn’t even aware of anything… until it reached me.

And the moment it did, the world shifted.

The classroom felt like a cage.

Their eyes were hunters’ eyes, waiting for a reaction.

They laughed, whispered, pointed — not bullying, not violent… but painful.

Because sometimes words can bruise deeper than hands.

What hurt the most wasn’t the gossip.

It was that the girls I trusted — the ones I called friends — were the ones who spread it.

I didn’t cry in school.

I cried at home.

Where nobody could see me fall apart.

I couldn’t tell him either — the boy who had slowly become the reason for my smiles.

So I pushed him away.

He texted me every day.

I ignored every message.

He thought I was bored of him.

He thought maybe I didn’t like him anymore.

Maybe I wanted to leave.

But he didn’t give up.

One day he called. Out of nowhere.

I answered, trying to sound normal.

“Hey.”

“Your voice is not okay,” he said immediately.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing… just a cold,” I lied.

He paused, and then replied softly:

> “Are you sure?

You know I’m always on your side, right?

I think about you — a lot.

I don’t know what’s wrong, but I can feel something is.

You don’t have to tell me now… or ever… but just remember — I’m here.

And I’ll wait.”

Something snapped inside me.

The tears I had been holding for weeks — all the shame, the hurt, the betrayal — came flooding out.

He stayed silent. He didn’t interrupt. He didn’t judge.

He just listened to me cry.

And for the first time since everything happened… I felt like I could breathe again.

When I finally stopped, he whispered:

> “Feeling better after letting it out?”

I was.

Strangely… I was.

Then he asked gently:

> “Do you want to tell me?

Now… later… or never? I’ll be okay with whatever you choose.”

“Yes,” I answered.

And I told him everything — the rumours, the humiliation, the betrayal of my so-called friends.

He didn’t interrupt. But I could hear the anger in his breathing.

When I finished, he took a deep breath and said:

> “I have an idea.

An idea to get revenge on them… for you.

Want to hear it?”

To be continued.

He asked her softly, “What kind of people are they? Anything… useful?”

Nina hesitated at first, but the pain she was holding for weeks finally pushed her to speak.

“Riya has a boyfriend,” she said, “but I once saw her behind the college with another guy. I never told anyone because… it was none of my business.”

“Ananya has that doll-keychain she treats like her own child. She won’t let anyone even touch it.”

“And Sahana… she makes that boy buy things for her. She pretends she’s clueless but she knows exactly what she’s doing.”

He listened without judging, without interrupting — just absorbing every detail. And then, with that frightening calm smile, he said,

“Perfect. I know exactly what to do.”

First, he asked Nina, “Where did you see Riya with the other guy?”

“Behind the college. Near the old wall,” she answered.

The next day the whispers started — not about Nina— but about Riya being seen on a bike with someone who wasn’t her boyfriend. A photo began circulating anonymously. Students were talking loud enough for Riya’s own friends to hear.

Then the second strike came. Ananya’s precious doll-keychain suddenly went missing, and a message spread that Sahana threw it away while mocking her for loving a toy like a kid.

And before anyone could breathe, the third blow hit:

Someone told the boy who always bought things for Sahana that she called him “a walking ATM.”

He confronted her in front of the class.

None of it pointed to Nina — because she did the smartest thing.

She tore her notes and left them scattered in the bin, pretending she was also upset and confused. There was nothing linking her to anything.

The plan worked. No one suspected her.

Trying to act normal, she joked lightly to the three girls, “Maybe we get targeted because we four hang out together?”

But they didn’t take it as a joke.

In seconds, the friendship that lasted since high school cracked like glass.

Riya shouted at Sahana for ruining everything;

Ananya screamed about her missing keychain;

Sahana accused both of being jealous of her.

By the end of the day — they weren’t friends anymore.

Three people who once swore they would always stand by each other… were now enemies.

Nina watched quietly — shocked more than satisfied. She thought they were strong. She thought they would never break because of something so small. But they did. And she felt guilty.

She told everything to  Vihaan— the boy who helped her, who planned everything.

He only laughed and said gently,

“They deserved it. You didn’t break their friendship, Mira. If a bond can break that easily… it wasn’t real.”

But still she cannot get the guilt out of her and she did think about it all night

The next morning, college felt like a different world.

The rumour about her had died overnight — replaced by the chaos about Riya cheating.

Nina finally felt invisible again… until he walked toward her.

The boy from the original rumour.

He approached in the corridor, eyes locked on her like he wanted to talk — and Nina could feel her heartbeat pounding because she knew…

If he talks to her publicly,

the rumour that finally died

could be born again.

And this time — she might not survive it.

To be continued....