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Author's POV

The return from the picnic wasn't filled with songs and laughter; it was a heavy, suffocating silence. The incharge report had reached the Principal's desk before the bus even touched the school gates. By Monday morning, a formal summons had been issued.

The Sharma and Mishra parents sat in the wood-paneled office, the air thick with disappointment.

"Sneaking out at midnight? In a restricted area?" Neeraj Sharma's voice was low, but vibrating with a fury that made Manvi shrink into her chair.

"We are deeply sorry, Sir," Dhruv said, standing straight, his voice calm despite the storm. "It was my responsibility to-"

"Responsibility?" Manav Mishra interrupted, his face reddened. "You were supposed to be focusing on your future, not acting like a protagonist in a cheap romance! And you," he turned to Manvi, "leading him into this?"

The fallout was immediate. The Principal issued a severe warning, but the real damage happened in the hallway afterward.

Anant's POV

I was standing by the lockers, waiting for the parents to leave, when I saw Krithika. She looked devastated-not just for Manvi, but for the "perfect" reputation she had spent years building.

"Krithika-" I started, reaching out.

She flinched away like I was made of acid. "Don't, Anant. Just... don't."

"Look, I know they messed up, but we don't have to-"

"We don't have to what?" she snapped, her eyes red and flashing with a cold, familiar fire. "Become like them? This is exactly why I stayed away from you . I let my guard down for one project, for one picnic, and look what happened. My sister is being treated like a criminal because she was with your brother."

"Wait, you're blaming him?" I felt the old defensive walls of the Mishra pride slam back into place. "Your sister is the one who jumped the wall! "

"Oh, of course," Krithika let out a harsh, jagged laugh. "The 'Hero' and the 'Culprit.' That's how you see us, isn't it? We're just the scholarship girls who 'corrupted' the VIP brothers. I saw the way your father looked at my parents there, Anant. Like we were dirt on his shoes."

"That's not fair, Krithika!"

"Life isn't fair, Topper!" she yelled, her voice echoing in the empty hall. "You'll go to your expensive university and be the 'Titan,' and we'll be the girls who got 'lucky' to study with you. I hate that I ever thought you were different. I hate that I let myself care."

She turned and walked away, and for the first time, I didn't follow. The respect, the butterflies, the "same direction"-it all felt like a childish fantasy. We were rivals. We were from different worlds. And today, the bridge between us didn't just crack; it vanished.

Mannu's POV

The ride home was the longest thirty minutes of my life. The second the front door closed, the storm broke.

"Have you lost your mind, Manvi?" Mumma cried, her voice hovering between a sob and a scream. "We trusted you! We gave you freedom and this is what we got in return: a betrayal a broken promise."

"I didn't do anything wrong! We just ate ice cream!" I shouted back, the tears finally spilling over.

"You risked your safety! You risked your reputation! And also our family's reputation. We are now a humiliation in society" Papa thundered, slamming his hand on the dining table. "Everything we've worked for, every sacrifice we made for your education-you threw it away for a midnight stunt?"

I collapsed onto the sofa, sobbing so hard my chest hurt. I looked at Kittu, hoping for a shred of support, but she was standing by the window, her back to me, her shoulders shaking. She wasn't just angry; she was grieving.

"That's enough," Papa said, his voice suddenly cold and decisive. "Class 12 is over. The results will be out in a month. We've discussed this."

He looked at Mumma, who nodded solemnly through her tears.

"You both are leaving this city," Papa announced. "Krithika, you'll go to the University at sudha chachi's place for your honors. Manvi, you're going to stay with shaila mausi. You need distance. You need to remember who you are without these distractions."

Author's POV

The decision was final. In the world of the Sharmas, there were no second chances for mistakes this loud.

While Dhruv sat in his room in shock and devastated, and Anant tore up the draft of a poem he'd been writing for Krithika, the two sisters were shattered listening to the decision of partition.

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