Arjun's POV

Arjun couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was wrong.

He felt like she was calling him.

The hallway was quiet, too quiet. Megha had walked out alone, and Shreya had already left. But Megha hadn’t returned, hadn’t called, hadn’t been seen by anyone.

He pulled out his phone and dialed her number. It rang once… twice… and then disconnected.

Frowning, he tried again. This time it rang endlessly before cutting off.

A wave of dread surged through his chest.

He walked faster through the corridor she had taken, glancing into every possible room. Empty.

Still nothing.

He reached the exit and asked one of the hotel guards, “Did Miss Megha Raisinghania leave the hotel?”

The guard frowned and shook his head. “No sir, we didn’t see her leave. She hasn’t passed through the main gate since the meeting.”

His heart dropped.

He checked the watch. It had been nearly 40 minutes since the meeting ended.

Panic began to bloom in his chest.

“Are you sure?” he asked again, his voice tense.

The guards nodded, confused.

Arjun didn’t waste another second. He began walking through every corridor, every floor she might’ve passed through. The uneasiness in his gut kept growing stronger, heavier.

And then—

Just as he turned into the old staff corridor behind the meeting hall, something caught his eye on the floor.

It was a phone.

Her phone.

Megha’s phone.

His blood ran cold.

He rushed toward it, picked it up, and confirmed — it was hers. Her wallpaper, her number. The screen was slightly cracked, like it had fallen mid-walk.

And it lay just a few feet away from the old abandoned storage room.

A beat passed.

Then his instincts kicked in.

“Megha!” he called out, moving to the door.

No answer.

He placed his ear against the wood.

And faintly, very faintly—he heard something.

A whimper.

A muffled thud.

His heart stopped.

“MEGHA!” he shouted, banging on the door now.

He jiggled the knob — locked.

He cursed under his breath, stepped back, and kicked at it hard.

Once. Twice.

Still locked.

“Security!” he shouted into his phone. “Get up here, now! Bring the damn keys for the storage rooms. There’s someone locked inside.”

As he waited, hands trembling with panic, he spoke through the door.

The thought that she was somewhere, trapped, in that dark room, almost paralyzed him.

He knew this fear. He knew it all too well.

Arjun couldn’t forget the image of her in college — a girl so afraid of the dark that she had cried, trembling in his arms when they'd been locked in that same type of room. He remembered the way her breath would catch in her throat, the panic in her eyes when the lights went out, how she clung to him, pleading with him to make it stop. It was one of those rare moments where he saw just how vulnerable she truly was.

“Megha, I’m here. I found your phone. I know you’re inside. Hold on, okay? Just hold on—”

From inside, her faint cries barely reached him, but they shattered him.

The staff and other security guards had rushed to the scene by now, but the key was nowhere to be found. The panic was spreading among them as they searched everywhere for it, but it was no use. The key was missing.

Arjun’s eyes darkened with determination. There was no way he was going to let her stay trapped inside, alone in the dark. Without waiting another moment, he shoved everyone aside and charged forward.

"Move!" he commanded, his voice full of authority. He pulled his shoulder back and slammed it into the door with all his force. The door creaked, but it didn’t budge. He hit it again. This time, the lock splintered, and the door broke open with a loud crack.

Inside, the room was pitch black, and the air was thick with the smell of dust. Arjun’s heart was in his throat as he stepped inside, his eyes quickly scanning the room. It was only then that he saw her — sitting in the corner, curled up into herself, her knees drawn to her chest.

Her face was buried in her arms, her body trembling.

“Megha!” he shouted, rushing over to her. His voice cracked with a mix of relief and desperation. He knelt down beside her, instinctively reaching for her.

She didn’t respond, too consumed by her fear. Arjun gently placed a hand on her shoulder, his voice low and soothing. “Megha, I’m here. You’re safe now. You’re not alone.”

She flinched at first, as though unsure of whether she could trust the safety he was offering, but then slowly, she lifted her head. Her eyes were red, her face pale, and tears streaked down her cheeks. She was still trembling, her breath shallow as if she couldn’t fully calm herself.

He didn’t wait for her to speak. Without a word, he enveloped her in his arms, holding her close to his chest. The panic that had gripped him earlier now seemed to dissolve as he comforted her, his hands gently stroking her hair.

“I'm here, Megha," he repeated softly, "I won’t let you go through this alone. I’ll never let you go through this alone again.”

For a few moments, they stayed like that, the world outside the room forgotten, as he let her lean into him for the comfort she desperately needed.

Megha, still shaking, instinctively climbed into his arms, gripping him tightly as though he was the only anchor in a storm. Her body pressed against his, and Arjun could feel the tremors that wracked her fragile form. His heart ached at the way she clung to him, as if she were afraid that if she let go, she would be lost forever.

For a few moments, neither of them spoke. Arjun just held her close, feeling her heart thudding against his chest, and all the while, his mind raced with the memory of the first time she'd been locked away in darkness, so helpless, so terrified. He had failed to reach her then, but now, as she clung to him, he couldn’t allow that to happen again. He was her safe place now.

The silence between them was thick, but then, barely above a whisper, he heard her voice—trembling, so soft that it almost seemed like a dream.

“You really came... you kept your promise...”

Her words were laced with disbelief, as though she couldn’t fully grasp that he had truly come for her, that he had heard her without her even needing to call out. Her body relaxed slightly in his embrace, but there was still that tension, that lingering fear in her, as though she was unsure if she was truly safe yet.

Arjun tightened his arms around her, his voice barely above a whisper, “Of course, Megha. I told you I’d always be there for you. I’ll never break my promise.”

But as soon as the words left his mouth, he felt her weight shift in his arms, and before he could react, her body went limp against him. Her head fell to his shoulder, and her breathing became shallow, slower—her fainting a stark contrast to the trembling mess she'd been just moments before.

"Megha?" Arjun’s voice was urgent, a new wave of panic flooding him as he gently pulled her back to look at her face. Her eyelids fluttered weakly, but she remained unresponsive, her body still in his arms.

His heart pounded in his chest as he softly cradled her head, brushing her hair back from her forehead. She was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. The trauma of the dark room, the suffocating fear, and the pent-up anxiety had taken everything out of her.

He needed to get her out of here, get her somewhere safe where she could recover. He scooped her up effortlessly, his body a barrier between her and the harsh world outside. As he walked out of the storage room with Megha in his arms, the chaos of the moment faded to the background.

"Don't worry, Megha," he murmured, his voice full of tenderness as he looked down at her pale face, "I’ve got you now. You’re safe. You’ll be okay."

Even though she couldn’t hear him, he felt the weight of the moment — th

e way she trusted him, even in her broken state. He knew, in that instant, that he would never let her go again, no matter what it took.