Author pov..

The moment Deeksha saw her Nanu, tears rushed to her eyes without warning.

Her vision blurred as she ran toward him, her small feet carrying all her fear and hope at once.

Inside the principal's office, the principal and her grandfather both turned to look at her.

Crying uncontrollably, Deeksha said,

"Nanu, I didn't cheat. You know that, right? You know I never lie."

Her grandfather, Rajvardhan Thakur, looked at her with calm certainty and gently replied,"Yes, my child. I know. She never lies."

Hearing those words, Deeksha's heart finally felt lighter.

The tight knot inside her chest loosened, and for a moment, she felt safe.

Rajvardhan Thakur then turned to the principal and said firmly,"Principal sir, I know my granddaughter well. She is very intelligent in her studies. She would never cheat. There must be some misunderstanding."

The principal sighed and replied,

"Look, Thakur sahab, because you are the trustee of this school, we did not give Deeksha any punishment. But the chits were found under her bench."

Before anyone could say anything more, Rahul came running into the office, breathless and nervous.

"Principal sir," he said quickly, "the chits were mine. I hadn't studied, so I brought them. By mistake, they fell from my bench onto Deeksha's."

Hearing this, Deeksha felt completely shocked.

She had always believed Rahul is a good boy.

But now, anger burned inside her.

She couldn't believe he had let her suffer for his mistake.

The principal looked at Rahul with tired eyes and said,"Rahul, there isn't a single class where you haven't done something wrong and escaped punishment. And today, your friend isn't even with you. What about Deepak? Did he cheat too?"

Rahul shook his head."No, sir. He didn't cheat. I didn't study, but he did."

The principal nodded and said sternly,"Alright. Bring your parents to school tomorrow. Go now. I'm tired of punishing you again and again."

Rahul didn't say a word. He simply turned around and walked away.

Deeksha kept watching him as he left, anger still rising in her chest.

The principal then turned to Rajvardhan Thakur and said politely,

"Thakur sahab, I'm sorry for calling you here and causing you trouble."

Rajvardhan replied calmly,"It's alright. But I did not like seeing my granddaughter cry like that."

The principal lowered his head."I'm sorry for that as well."

Rajvardhan then turned to Deeksha and said gently,"Go, Deeksha. Get your bag. We're going home."

Deeksha hesitated."But Nanu, I still have classes today."

Rajvardhan shook his head.

"No. You've attended enough for today. You can come back tomorrow."

Deeksha agreed silently.

Right now, she didn't feel good being in school anymore.

The place that once felt familiar suddenly felt heavy and unkind and all she wanted was to go home with her Nanu.

As Deeksha walked away, she noticed Rahul and Deepak standing together on the open ground outside.

She moved toward Rahul, but suddenly heard Deepak speaking.

The words weren't clear at first, so she stepped closer quietly, carefully until every sentence reached her ears.

Deepak was saying,"No, Rahul... why did you do this? It was my fault. I deliberately put the chits on Deeksha's bench so she would get caught and scolded by the teacher. So why did you take the blame? Now uncle will be very angry with you."

Rahul replied in a low, serious voice,

"Deeksha's guardian had come today, Deepak. Did you hear the way people were talking about her? I felt really bad for her. And I didn't want you to get trapped. If you had been caught, your mother would have stopped your studies. That's why I trapped myself instead."

Deeksha froze.

The truth hit her like a storm. For a moment, she didn't know how to react or what to feel.

Then she walked straight toward them.

The moment Rahul and Deepak saw her, fear flashed across their faces.

Deeksha said sharply,

"What problem do you have with me, Deepak? Why are you always after me? Just because I wrote your name on the blackboard once, you took revenge like this?"

She turned toward Rahul, her voice trembling with anger.

"And you, Rahul why are you protecting him? Is this what a friend does? Because of him, you'll be scolded by your parents."

Deepak lowered his head and said quickly,"I'm sorry, Deeksha. Please forgive me. I did it as a joke. I thought the teacher would just scold you. I never imagined it would go this far."

Deeksha's eyes burned with anger.

"Saying sorry won't fix anything," she said coldly. "Come on. Let's tell the principal the truth."

Deepak nodded weakly."Okay. I'll go and tell him."

But Rahul stepped forward hurriedly.

"Deeksha, please forgive him. If even one more complaint goes against him, his mother will definitely take him out of this school. Please... nothing like this will happen again."

Deeksha looked at Rahul and asked quietly,"And you, Rahul? Won't your parents say anything to you?"

"They will," Rahul admitted. "But not that much. If his family finds out, his mother will surely stop his studies forever. Please, Deeksha."

Deeksha felt her anger rise again. She looked at both of them and said firmly,"You both are the same. At least one of you deserves punishment."

And with that, she turned around and walked away.

All the college students began shouting at once, demanding that Raj Thakur be taken to the police.

“He deserves punishment for harassment,” they said angrily.

Divya stepped forward too, her voice firm but trembling with emotion.

“Yes, he must be punished,” she said. “All the girls of this college will file an FIR against him. Only then will the police take action. Otherwise, he’ll be let go again, just like before.”

The girls nodded in agreement. One by one, they decided to go together to register the FIR.

Just then, Vaibhav stopped Divya.

“Divya… I need to say something to you,” he said softly.

Divya looked at him, surprised. “Yes? Say it.”

Vaibhav took a deep breath, his eyes lowered in shame.“Divya, whatever I said to you in college that day… please forgive me. I am truly ashamed of myself.”

The entire college seemed to fall silent.

Students turned their heads toward Divya, watching her closely.

Divya felt her face burn with embarrassment.

Ishani stood beside her and gently held her hand.“Divya, please forgive bhaiya now,” Ishani whispered.

Divya shook her head, confused and uncomfortable.

“What are you doing?” she said. “I don’t want an apology. I only said that in anger.”

But Vaibhav didn’t move. His voice was steady, sincere.“No. I really want your forgiveness. Until you forgive me, I won’t leave here.”

Divya looked at him for a long moment.

Then she sighed.“Fine. I forgive you. Now let’s go to the police.”

A wave of relief washed over Vaibhav’s face."Okay… let’s go,” he said quietly.

The professors stood frozen where they were, watching everything unfold.

The entire college students, along with Divya, Vaibhav, and Ishani walked together, taking Raj Thakur and his friends straight to the police station.

The professors couldn’t say a single word.

If it had been just one student, they could have easily silenced that voice.

But how do you silence hundreds speaking together?

When the students reached the police station, even the police officers were startled by the sheer crowd.

“We want to file an FIR,” Vaibhav said firmly.

The police officer responded immediately, “Yes, tell me the name.”

Divya stepped forward. “Raj Thakur.”

Hearing the name, the officer frowned and said, “Raj Thakur? Are you all in your senses? He’s an MLA’s son.”

At that, all the students shouted together, their voices echoing through the station.

“It doesn’t matter whose son he is! He harassed us again and again!”

The force of so many voices made even the police nervous.

“Who all has he harassed?” the officer asked.

Every girl and boy raised  hand.

Seeing so many raised hands, the officer swallowed hard and said,

“Alright,” and began writing the FIR.

Then the police said, “But we’ll have to go and bring Raj Thakur.”

Vaibhav shook his head. “No need. We’ve already brought him.”

The students stepped aside.

Raj Thakur stood there, blood still trickling down his face, as if he had been beaten badly.

The students added, “His friends supported him too. They should be jailed as well.”

The police, now completely shaken, said, “Okay,” and locked all of them in jail.

Writing the full FIR took nearly two hours.

Finally, the officer looked up and said,

“It’s done. You all can go now. They will receive the strictest punishment.”

The students nodded silently and began to leave.

As soon as they were gone, a look of relief crossed the police officer’s face.

Without wasting a second, he picked up the phone and called Anand Thakur Raj’s father.

He told him everything.

On the other side, Deeksha walked out of her classroom with her bag in her hand and headed straight to the principal’s office.

Her Nanu was already sitting there.

She looked at him anxiously and said,

“Nanu… can you save Rahul?”

Both her grandfather and the principal turned to look at her in surprise.

The principal asked, “But why do you want to save him, Deeksha?”

Deeksha folded her hands slightly, her voice soft but urgent.“Sir, please don’t punish him this time. If he does anything wrong again, you can punish him then.”

The principal raised an eyebrow. “So you’re protecting him, Deeksha?”

“Yes, sir,” she admitted. “He’s my classmate. Please forgive him.”

Rajvardhan spoke gently but firmly,

“Deeksha, you don’t need to beg anyone for forgiveness for someone else.”

She looked at him with pleading eyes.

“Nanu, then you say it. Please ask him to forgive Rahul just once.”

Rajvardhan studied her face.

He didn’t understand why she was doing this but he also knew that Deeksha never took sides without a reason.

There had to be something more.

He turned to the principal.

“Principal sir, please forgive the boy this time. Nothing like this will happen again I give you my word. And if it does, you may take whatever action you see fit.”

The principal sighed.

“Thakur sahab, why are you saying this? If it’s coming from you, we have to agree. You may go nothing will happen to him.”

Rajvardhan nodded.

“Come, Deeksha,” he said.

“Yes, Nanu,” she replied.

They walked out together, got into the car, and asked the driver to start driving.

After a while, Rajvardhan asked quietly,“Why did you save that boy?”

Deeksha hesitated. She looked out of the window, wondering whether she should tell him or not.

Seeing her silence, Rajvardhan smiled faintly.“So now you’ve started hiding things even from your Nanu?”

Deeksha turned to him immediately.

“No, Nanu, it’s not like that. You’re the only one I share all my secrets with.”

“Then tell me,” he said softly. “Why did you save him?”

Deeksha told him everything from the very beginning.

After listening carefully, Rajvardhan nodded thoughtfully.“So Rahul is a good boy. That means he took the blame upon himself to save his friend… and he protected you too.”

Deeksha frowned.“He’s not good, Nanu. He’s dumb. Who gets hurt just to save others like that?”

Rajvardhan smiled gently.“People like that do exist, Deeksha. And those who have such people in their lives are very fortunate. My advice to you is you should be friends with him too.”

Deeksha fell silent, lost in thought.

Could Nanu be right? she wondered. Rahul really is a good person.

Rajvardhan noticed her thinking but didn’t say anything.

After a few moments, his phone rang.

As soon as he answered, his expression changed.

He was informed,“Your grandson, Raj Thakur, has been put in jail.”

Hearing this, Rajvardhan said angrily,

“Now what has that useless boy done again?”

Deeksha looked at her Nanu in anger

but she didn’t say a word.

Deeksha and her grandfather finally reached Thakur Haveli, a grand mansion that looked like it belonged to the era of kings and royal families.

Its old walls carried stories of power and pride.

The guards opened the iron gates, and the car slowly rolled inside before coming to a stop.

Deeksha stepped out first. Rajvardhan followed, his face burning with anger.

Without looking back, he walked straight toward the haveli.

Deeksha watched her grandfather silently.

She knew something was about to happen today. And she also knew who was responsible for it.

Raj bhaiya.

Her brother.

But the moment Deeksha entered the hall, her sadness faded.

On the sofa sat Abhay, Raj’s elder brother.

Her face lit up instantly.

“Abhay bhaiya!” she shouted, running toward him.

Abhay looked up, and the moment he saw Deeksha, a warm smile spread across his face.

He stood up just as Deeksha threw her arms around him tightly.

“Abhay bhaiya, when did you come?” she asked excitedly.

“I arrived in the morning,” Abhay replied gently. “You have already gone to school.”

Deeksha made a playful face. “Ohh… so you’ve been here for a long time.”

“Yes,” Abhay smiled.

Seeing Abhay, even Rajvardhan’s anger softened for a moment.

Abhay walked toward his grandfather and bent down to touch his feet respectfully.

“May you always stay happy,”

Rajvardhan said, placing his hand on Abhay’s head.

Then he added, “But Abhay, you didn’t even tell me you were coming.”

“I wanted to surprise you, Dadu,” Abhay said with a small smile.

“I see,” Rajvardhan replied.

Abhay noticed the worry on his grandfather’s face. “What happened, Dadu? You seem lost in thought.”

Rajvardhan sighed deeply. “What should I even tell you, son? Your brother has done something again… something so serious that the police have taken him to jail.”

Abhay didn’t look shocked or surprised.

He already knew what kind of person Raj was.

Raj’s goondaism was known all over Banaras.

This day was bound to come.

“Why are you worried, Dadu?” Abhay said calmly. “Your son will get him out.”

Rajvardhan’s voice turned firm. “Abhay, he is your father. You should call him Papa.”

Abhay said nothing.

He simply lowered his eyes silent, distant, and heavy with emotions left unspoken.

On the other side, the campus slowly began to empty.

After everything that had happened, even the professors had left for their homes.

Students quietly started heading back, each lost in their own thoughts.

Vaibhav turned to Ishani and Divya and said, “You two take an auto. I’ll follow you behind you till home.”

Divya and Ishani nodded, found an auto, and sat inside.

As the auto moved forward, Ishani looked at Divya, her curiosity mixed with confusion.“Divya… where did you get all those videos you showed in the auditorium?”

Divya took a deep breath before replying. “When I dropped you back to class, I went straight to Vaibhav. I told him everything what Raj did to you, how he harassed you.”

Hearing it all, Vaibhav became furious. He was about to go and fight Raj, but I stopped him.

I told him, ‘Why are you fighting Ishani’s battle for her? One day, Ishani will have to fight her own fight. If you and I always act like her shield, how will she ever learn to take a stand?’

Vaibhav thought about it and realized I was right.

Then he asked me, “So what should I do?”

I told him, “There was a CCTV camera where Raj caught her. If we can get that footage, we can actually do something.”

Vaibhav said there’s a control room where all the CCTV recordings are stored.

I asked him to take me there.

When we reached, a staff member was sitting there, managing all the cameras.

We asked him for today’s footage, but he refused.

Vaibhav had to threaten him a little only then did we get the video.

Then that man said something shocking.

“Not just one girl,” he said. “This boy has harassed many girls. I have their videos too. If you want them, you’ll have to pay.”

I told him firmly, “If you won’t give them to us like this, you’ll have to give them to the police.”

He laughed and said, “Even the police can’t do anything. He’s the son of an MLA.”

Vaibhav warned him again, but he still didn’t agree.

In the end, Vaibhav paid ten thousand rupees, and only then did we get all the harassment videos.

We were both in shock.

We couldn’t believe how many girls Raj had already hurt.

That’s when I realized something if we fought this battle alone, he would come out easily.

But if many people stood together, if pressure was created, then he wouldn’t escape so easily.

Listening to all this, Ishani’s eyes filled with tears.

She hugged Divya tightly and said,

“Thank you, Divya, for helping me. You are really a good person.”

Divya smiled and replied lightly,

“Yes… I know. I am good.”

Divya and Ishani stepped out of the auto when Vaibhav arrived from behind and paid the driver.

Divya immediately took out her share of the money and handed it to Vaibhav.

“I don’t need it,” Vaibhav said softly.

“No, please take it,” Divya insisted.

Vaibhav looked at her really looked at her his eyes saying much more than his words ever could.

Divya understood that look.

After a brief pause, she quietly put the money back.

Then, hesitantly, she said, “If possible… please don’t tell my parents about today’s incident. Otherwise, they won’t let me go to college tomorrow.”

“But why, Divya?” Ishani asked, confused. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You were just explaining this to me a while ago—so why are you scared now?”

Divya sighed. “My father will understand. But my mother… she won’t let me step out of the house after this.”

Vaibhav spoke gently, trying to reassure her. “Don’t worry. Nothing like that will happen. You go home.”

Divya fell silent.

She simply nodded and walked inside.

As soon as she entered the house, everything looked familiar almost too normal.

Her grandmother and mother were sitting in their usual place, watching a

TV serial, just like every other day.

But something felt odd. Rahul wasn’t there.

He never missed his favorite serial, yet today he was nowhere to be seen.

Rani noticed Divya and smiled warmly. “You’re back, my child? Go wash your hands and face, then come eat.”

“Yes, Mummy,” Divya replied softly. “I’m really very hungry today.”

After washing her hands and face, Divya changed into her home clothes and sat down at the dining table to eat.

As she ate, she casually scrolled through reels on her phone, half-lost in her own thoughts.

Suddenly, a viral reel appeared on the screen.

In the video, Ishani slapped Raj.

Divya froze.

The food stuck in her throat, and she began to choke.

Rani rushed toward her. “Hey, eat slowly,” she said with concern.

Divya immediately locked her phone so her mother wouldn’t see what had appeared on the screen.

Rani handed her a glass of water.

Divya drank it quickly, her heart pounding.

“I’m fine, Mum,” Divya said after a moment. “I’ll be back soon. I’m going to Ishani’s house.”

Rani replied, “At least finish your food first.”

But Divya didn’t listen.

She got up and ran out of the house, heading straight toward Ishani’s home fear, worry, and urgency pushing her forward.

Vaibhav and Ishani were sitting at the table, quietly eating, while Malini moved back and forth in the kitchen.

Suddenly, Divya came running in.

Vaibhav and Ishani both looked up at once. “What happened?” they asked together, alarmed by the look on her face.

Divya tried to speak, but no words came out.

Instead, with trembling hands, she opened her phone and showed them the reel.

Vaibhav and Ishani stared at the screen shocked.

“What do we do now?” Divya asked, her voice barely steady.

Vaibhav frowned. “Who posted this? Message this username and tell them to delete the video.”

Divya immediately sent a message to the account, asking them to take the reel down.

But before any reply came, another reel appeared this one featuring Divya herself.

It was from the auditorium, where she had been giving a speech in front of everyone.

Divya’s mind raced.

Who is this mad person? she thought.

Do they want to destroy me?

She showed the second reel to

Vaibhav and Ishani.

Ishani panicked. “Please tell them to delete it,” she pleaded. “Why is this account doing this to us?”

“Give it to me,” Vaibhav said firmly.

He took the phone and messaged the account himself.

After a few moments, a reply came.

Vaibhav read it aloud, his expression hardening.

(“I did a very good thing by uploading this video to make such boys feel ashamed. After seeing you, other girls will also stop being scared. They won’t stay silent when they’re harassed.”)

As Vaibhav read the message, he understood immediately this was someone from their college.

He handed the phone back and said gravely, “We need to tell your parents about this. And my mother too.”

At that, Ishani and Divya both froze, fear washing over their faces.

Just then, Malini stepped out of the kitchen. “Tell me what?” she asked, sensing the tension.

Then she looked at Divya gently and added, “Divya beta, today Vaibhav apologized to you, didn’t he? And you forgave him too… didn’t you?”

Divya spoke with a stammer, her voice unsteady. “Yes, Aunty… Vaibhav did apologize, and I forgave him.”

Malini looked at her carefully. “Then why are you speaking like this, Divya?”

Before Divya could answer, Vaibhav stepped forward. “Maa, I need to tell you something.”

“Yes, go on,” Malini said.

Vaibhav told her everything—every detail of what had happened at college.

Malini stood frozen, shocked all over her face.

Then her eyes moved to Ishani. Tears welled up instantly.

She cupped Ishani’s face in her hands and said, her voice breaking, “Ishani… so much happened, and you didn’t tell me? Why, my child?”

Ishani looked at her mother, her own eyes filling with tears. “Mummy, I didn’t understand anything. I thought he was just troubling me. But when he started touching me forcefully… I didn’t know what to do.”

Malini broke down completely.

She pulled Ishani into a tight embrace, crying. “Your father isn’t here, Ishani. But did you think your mother and brother weren’t here either? We are here. And we will always stand by you, my child.”

“Yes, Maa,” Ishani whispered. “I understand now. Divya explained everything to me so clearly.”

Malini wiped her tears and then walked toward Divya.

Taking Divya’s hands, she said softly, “Thank you, Divya. You didn’t hold any grudge when Vaibhav spoke badly to you. And you saved my Ishani.”

Divya smiled faintly and replied, “It’s okay, Aunty. I’m not a stranger to you anyway. You’re like a mother to me. And even if you didn’t want to keep a relationship with me anymore… that would be fine too.”

Malini laughed gently through her tears. “Don’t say such things, Divya. You are my daughter too.”

She hugged Divya tightly.

Vaibhav watched the two of them with quiet affection.

Ishani’s eyes filled with tears once again this time not from fear, but from love.

Vote and comment please ❤️🙏