The farewell was a blur of laughter and tears, but for Ansh, it felt like time was slipping through his fingers. He sat beside Pakhi during lunch, trying to memorize every detail—her smile, the way she tucked her hair behind her ear, the softness in her voice. They shared food, but more than that, they shared a silence that begged to be broken.

He wanted to tell her. He had rehearsed it a hundred times. But the words stayed locked behind the fear of losing what little he had with her.