Shadow Queen
The cafeteria was a riot of noise—clattering trays, shrill laughter, conversations stacked on top of each other until they became a dull roar. It was the kind of chaos that exhausted Avya within minutes.
She sat in her usual corner, back to the wall, tray untouched except for the cup of black coffee cooling near her fingers. Most people ignored this spot. Too far. Too quiet. Too lonely.
Exactly how she liked it.
“Is this seat taken?”
Avya looked up slowly.
A girl stood there, textbooks clutched tightly to her chest like armor. Her eyes were rimmed red, lashes still wet as if she’d wiped away tears in a hurry. The smile she offered was fragile, trembling at the edges.
Avya arched a brow. “Looks empty, doesn’t it?”
The girl let out a shaky laugh and slid into the chair anyway. She placed her books down carefully, as if afraid of making noise. “I just… needed somewhere quiet.”
“You picked the right place,” Avya said flatly, returning to her food.
For a few seconds, silence settled between them—comfortable for Avya, unbearable for the stranger. Then the girl sighed, a sound so heavy it filled the space.
“I prefer not crying in public,” she muttered. “But… here we are.”
That made Avya look at her again. Really look. The stiffness in her shoulders. The way she kept blinking, like she was holding something back. Avya recognized it instantly.
Pain.
“Bad breakup?” Avya asked, blunt as always.
The girl gave a bitter laugh. “Worse. My mother found out I like someone who doesn’t tick her boxes. Now I’m being paraded in front of rishtas like I’m for sale.”
Avya leaned back in her chair, lips curling into a smirk. “Classic. Wrong guy, family meltdown, dramatic matchmaking. You could write a script.”
For the first time, the girl laughed—a real laugh, sudden and unguarded. And to her own surprise, Avya felt her lips curve too. Just a fraction. But it was genuine.
That was how it began.
The next day, the girl appeared again. Same corner. Same tentative smile.
And the day after that.
Soon, it wasn’t strange anymore.
Weeks blurred into months. Late-night study marathons that turned into gossip sessions. Chai runs under flickering neon streetlamps, laughing at nothing and everything. Whispered secrets in dark dorm rooms, voices hushed like the world might be listening.
Avya didn’t talk much about herself. She listened. Observed. Remembered.
The girl—Naira—talked enough for both of them.
One evening, after a long walk back from campus, Avya stopped her near the hostel gate. Without a word, she took Naira’s hand and curled her fingers into a fist.
“Thumb outside,” Avya instructed calmly. “Not tucked in. You’ll break it.”
Naira blinked. “Why are you teaching me this?”
Avya smirked. “Just in case.”
Naira laughed, but she practiced anyway.
Under the stars, sitting on the cold terrace floor, Naira once whispered, “You’re my safe place, Avya.”
The words settled heavy in Avya’s chest.
She didn’t say it back. She never did. Words like that were dangerous. Words like that came with expectations.
But in her heart, she knew the truth.
Naira was hers too.
And neither of them realized yet—this wasn’t just the beginning of a friendship.
***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***
Updated 119 Episodes
Download
Like this story? Download the app to keep your reading history.
Comments