Episode-2

Episode 2: The Game Begins

The music played softly in the background — a grand piano weaving notes through the air like silk threads — but Ruby hardly heard it.

She stood by the tall glass windows of the Marigold Palace, her eyes fixed on the reflection staring back at her. The same reflection everyone loved — perfect posture, elegant smile, soft, soulful eyes. But only she knew what lay behind them.

A storm.

Amit Khurana had entered her world like a lightning strike.

It wasn’t his wealth. That didn’t impress her — she was used to money. It wasn’t his looks either, though there was something dangerously appealing about the way he carried himself — sharp, quiet, composed. What had caught her… was the energy. The confidence that wasn’t loud, but settled, like it had been there all along. Unbothered. Unapologetic.

The type of energy that could match her own.

Ruby had never felt this before. Not truly. She’d played obsession before. She’d manipulated it, toyed with it. But this? This was real. This was hers.

She didn’t just want Amit — she needed him. She needed to peel him apart and place every piece inside her heart like a puzzle she was born to solve.

And tonight, the game would begin.

Across the hall, Amit moved through the crowd like he didn’t belong to anyone — and didn’t care to. He wore a crisp black suit, the fabric hugging his form with calculated grace. He spoke to few, smiled even less, but observed everything.

When he saw her — truly saw her — something shifted inside him.

She was beautiful, yes. But that wasn’t it.

There was a stillness in her that made noise. A quiet so loud, it echoed. Her presence reminded him of snow — delicate on the surface, deadly underneath.

Amit knew people like her. He was people like her.

And that’s what made her interesting.

He watched as she made her way through the gala — each step light, each laugh perfectly timed. She was performing, and most people around her were fooled.

But he saw it. The slight delay in her smile. The tension in her jaw when someone got too close. The flicker in her eyes when she looked at him.

She was hunting him.

And that made him want to be caught.

Later in the evening, their paths crossed again. This time, alone. By the wine table. The servers had stepped away, and the crowd had thinned.

Ruby reached for a glass of red. So did he. Their fingers brushed.

She looked up. “We really do keep meeting.”

His lips curved slightly. “Or maybe we’re not trying hard enough to avoid it.”

Ruby laughed softly — a sound so smooth it could cut silk. “I don’t mind running into interesting people.”

He held her gaze. “Neither do I.”

For a second, the world paused. Two minds, two masks, both perfectly worn. Neither willing to drop the act. And yet, beneath the charm and banter, something darker stirred. Something that whispered:

I see you.

And maybe… you see me too.

But neither said it.

Not yet.

For now, the dance would continue — slow, elegant, laced with secrets.

And somewhere deep inside both of them, a quiet voice whispered the truth neither was ready to admit:

This wasn’t love.

This was war.

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