she

Like the earth joyfully welcoming the long-lost sunlight after many days, the blue morning beautifully embraced the young rays of the sun.

It was time for Madhavi to get ready for office.

“Amma, where is my tiffin box?”

Even asking such a simple question was no longer possible.

Because her mother had gone far away from her forever.

The moment Madhavi was born, her father abandoned them simply because she was a girl.

As long as her mother was alive, she did everything she could to educate her. The only degree Madhavi managed to complete was a B.A.

After finishing her studies, Madhavi dreamed of getting a job and supporting her mother. She wished to buy her silk sarees, sandals, and all the little things her mother had denied herself for years.

But everything ended too soon.

Her mother was gone.

Madhavi fought through life on her own. As much as possible, she never wanted to depend on anyone or stretch her hand before others. She chose to live only through her own hard work and determination.

Nandini, Madhavi’s friend, was born into a wealthy family.

Her father was a businessman, her mother a doctor, and her elder brother was also a doctor. She had every comfort and luxury in life.

Even so, while studying in Chennai, she stayed with Madhavi and worked alongside her as a companion and support to her.

Nandini was a good-hearted woman. Beautiful, talented, intelligent — she possessed everything. Yet she remained a true friend to Madhavi.

Even though Nandhini and Madhavi worked in different offices, their mornings always began together.

The same road, the same bus stop, the same laughter — amidst the rush of city life, they had created a small world of their own.

That morning too began like any other.

As they were getting ready for work, Nandhini’s phone suddenly rang.

“Who is it?” Madhavi asked while fixing her hair.

“My brother, Naren…” Nandhini replied as she answered the call.

Within seconds, the color drained from her face.

“Dad isn’t well… they’ve admitted him to the hospital…” she said in a trembling voice, frozen in panic.

“I’ll come with you,” Madhavi said immediately, getting ready to leave with her.

But when they reached downstairs near the vehicle, Madhavi suddenly remembered something important.

There was an auditing session at the office that day — a meeting she absolutely couldn’t miss.

After a moment of hesitation, she spoke softly,

“Nandhini… you go ahead first. I’ll finish the auditing work and come to the hospital by afternoon.”

Nandhini quietly nodded.

Fear and confusion filled her eyes.

“Drive carefully…” Madhavi said before stepping away from the vehicle.

Unable to even return a small smile, Nandhini simply replied,

“Okay…”

Then she slowly drove away.

Neither of them knew…

that within the next few minutes, their lives were about to change forever.

That morning, Madhavi got ready for work and stood at the bus stop as usual.

But without Nandhini beside her, the journey felt strangely empty. Normally, their conversations would fill the morning with energy and laughter, but today there was only silence and a quiet sense of loneliness.

Since she had left home a little earlier than usual, she felt somewhat relieved, hoping she would at least reach the office on time.

But the bus was late, and time slowly kept slipping away.

At that moment, quite unexpectedly, Geetha — who worked with her — arrived there.

Stopping her scooter near Madhavi, Geetha said,

“It’s getting late… come, let’s go.”

At that moment, it felt like a great help to Madhavi.

Without hesitation, she left with Geetha.

Within fifteen minutes, they reached the office.

But as soon as she walked inside, Madhavi realized that they had still arrived later than office hours, and a small feeling of disappointment settled in her heart.

After parking her vehicle, Geetha told Madhavi that she would be back in a moment and walked away.

“You go ahead…” Madhavi said as she hurried toward the lift and quickly pressed the button.

Lost in her anxious and hurried state of mind, she didn’t even notice a young man standing behind her.

A few moments later, he politely stepped closer and asked softly,

“Excuse me… could you please give me a little space?”

But just hearing a male voice so suddenly startled Madhavi badly.

“Ahhh!” she screamed in fear.

Still shaken by the sudden shock, she immediately began complaining angrily,

“If women are alone somewhere, men always come and disturb them!”

Without even giving him a chance to explain himself, Madhavi continued speaking in anger.

Hearing the noise, Geetha quickly rushed back and tried to calm her down.

“Madhavi… relax… what happened?” she asked gently.

But the young man standing there understood absolutely nothing.

He stood there silently, completely confused as to why simply asking for a little space had turned into such a huge misunderstanding.

Geetha awkwardly turned toward the young man and said,

“Sorry… she gets angry very quickly,” before stepping into the lift along with Madhavi.

But Madhavi still hadn’t calmed down.

“Why are you even talking to him?” she muttered irritably at Geetha.

A few moments later, they entered the office.

As soon as they walked in, a piece of good news reached Madhavi’s ears.

The Managing Director, who was supposed to come for the audit that day, apparently wouldn’t be coming after all.

The moment she heard that, her heart instantly felt lighter.

“Then I can apply for leave today and go visit Nandhini’s father at the hospital…” she thought happily to herself.

At that moment, she had no idea that bad news was waiting just behind that moment of relief.

Hurriedly, she went to Geetha and said,

“I need to take leave today.”

Geetha hesitated for a moment before replying,

“But… they’re saying the boss’s son is coming for the audit instead…”

The moment she heard those words, Madhavi froze in shock.

Madhavi stood there quietly, disappointed that she might not be able to take leave that day.

Just then, Akhila arrived.

She was the kind of person who somehow knew everything happening in the office — who spoke to whom, what happened where, and every little piece of gossip. That was exactly why everyone in the office called her “The Newspaper.”

That day, she looked especially excited.

After all, she had gathered fresh information about the Managing Director’s son.

Curious, Geetha immediately asked,

“Tell me… what’s he like?”

As though she had been waiting for someone to ask, Akhila eagerly began talking.

“His name is Madhavan… apparently he completed his MBA in London. Very smart too. They say there isn’t a single woman who hasn’t fallen for him…” she continued, going on and on about him.

Listening to all this, Madhavi frowned.

“Oh, so his name is Madhavan? That explains everything,” she said sarcastically.

After a brief pause, she muttered again,

“And as if that wasn’t enough, he’s rich too…”

With that, she walked away from them and quietly sat down at her desk.

But she didn’t know one thing…

Within the next few hours, the very same “Madhavan” she had spoken about with such annoyance was going to change her life completely.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***