CHAPTER-3

Nila kept staring at the screen.

Hi — Aiden.

Her thumb hovered over the keyboard. A second passed. Then another.

Finally, she typed back.

Hi.

Sent.

The reply came quickly.

Reached home?

Simple. Straight. Like he didn’t know how to waste words.

Yes, she typed.

No emojis. No extra explanations. Still, her mind didn’t feel calm.

A few minutes later:

I saw your friends still teasing you after class.

Nila read it twice before answering.

Yeah… they always do.

It should have felt like nothing—just a normal conversation.

But it wasn’t nothing. Not tonight.

Aiden sent another message.

Class got a bit noisy after you left.

Nila’s fingers paused.

Hmm… I know.

After that, silence.

The kind of silence that didn’t feel rude—just… him.

Then:

Okay.

That was it.

And somehow, that made her keep staring at the chat even more.

Her phone buzzed again—this time Sam.

Reached?

Nila replied automatically.

Yes.

Eat something.

Okay.

Comfort. Routine. The usual.

She switched back to Aiden’s chat.

No new messages.

A few minutes passed.

Then:

Good night.

Nila stared at the words, feeling stupid for how much space they were taking up in her head.

After a brief pause, she replied.

Good night.

Sam called.

Nila answered on the second ring.

“Hello…”

“You sound different today,” Sam said. Not accusing. Just… noticing.

Nila didn’t know what to say, so she went with the easiest lie.

“Just tired.”

“Okay,” Sam said softly. “Take rest.”

The call ended.

Nila sat on her bed with her phone in her hand, both chats open in her mind even when the screen wasn’t.

Sam felt normal.

Aiden felt unclear.

And unclear, she was realising, could be dangerous.

A notification popped up.

Sam again.

By the way… who is Aiden?

Nila froze.

Her fingers stopped moving.

She had known this question would come sooner or later. She just hadn’t expected it to come tonight.

Just a classmate, she typed.

A pause.

Then another message from Sam:

I can see your account activity. I still have access.

For a second, Nila didn’t breathe.

The truth hit her like cold water—Sam could see more than he should. More than she had remembered.

Everything she had done.

Everyone she had searched.

A strange, uneasy feeling settled in her chest.

Without replying, without explaining, she opened her settings.

Changed her password.

Logged out of all devices.

No announcement. No fight. No justification.

Just a quiet decision.

She stared at her screen afterward—Aiden’s chat still there in the background, Sam’s name still sitting in her recent messages.

And for the first time, she felt like she was stepping into something she didn’t fully understand yet.

Replace this whole section in your polished Chapter 6:

Near the washroom entrance, she leaned… (till end)

With this:

Near the washroom entrance, she leaned lightly against the wall. The corridor was quieter here, the earlier noise fading into the distance.

But her thoughts weren’t quiet.

Aiden’s “Hi.”

The walk.

The teasing voices.

It kept replaying like it had gotten stuck.

She took a small breath, trying to steady herself.

Footsteps passed through the corridor—someone walking by, unhurried.

Nila looked up at the wrong moment.

Aiden was passing by, probably heading back to class. Their eyes met for a second.

Not a moment. Not a scene.

Just a glance.

Still, her heartbeat jumped like it had been waiting for a reason.

Before she could think, she turned away and walked straight into the washroom.

The door closed behind her.

Silence again.

But inside her, her heart wasn’t anywhere near as quiet as the corridor outside.

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