5. The Lightning before the storm.
The city was still wide awake, but Sameeksha’s street had gone quiet.
Only the hum of a distant train and the soft rattle of leaves outside her window remained.
She sat on the floor of her bedroom legs crossed, oversized tee hanging off one shoulder, a mug of lukewarm green tea forgotten beside her.
Author ✍️❤️
Just imagine she’s sitting in the floor with a mug.
Her sketchpad lay open across her lap, the page still blank.
It was alive , electric with fragments of feelings she couldn’t name.
The anonymous DM from earlier still echoed in her brain:
“That third painting , the hands ,
felt like something I used to dream about.
Thank you for making it real.”
But she also hadn’t stopped thinking about it.
She glanced at the sender’s name again.
Cryptic. Strangely poetic.
Like someone was hiding in plain sight.
She wasn’t scared.
No , she was haunted… by the weirdest comfort.
That someone out there understood the storm inside her without needing to ask her name.
She could hear her best friend Anaya’s voice in her head already:
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
Babes, he’s either a stalker or your soulmate. Or both. Mumbai men are talented.
Sameeksha Rathore
*She smiled to herself.*
And then, as if summoned by thought, her phone rang.
Anaya, Midnight caller. Always.
Sameeksha Rathore
I was literally thinking about you. *Softly said.*
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
Good. Then the witchcraft is working. Now tell me why do you sound like you’re in a period drama, sighing at the moon and dying of unsaid feelings?
Sameeksha Rathore
You’re impossible. *Laughed.*
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
Try me. *Laughing as well.*
Sameeksha Rathore
I saw a name today. Didn’t meet him, didn’t know him, but it felt like I already did..
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
Name.?
Sameeksha Rathore
Raghuvanshi.
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
You’re telling me a name gave you an existential crisis?
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
*More softer this time.* Sameeksha… did something else happen?
Sameeksha told her everything — the festival, the paintings, the banner, the pull. The DM.
By the end, Anaya was quiet.
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
Okay.
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
I’m saying this once. You need to follow this feeling. Not stalk. Not obsess. But… don’t ignore it. You’ve always painted your intuition before it shows up in real life. Maybe this is that moment.
Sameeksha Rathore
What if I’m imagining it? *She said as she closed her eyes.*
Anaya Shetty (Fl’s Best friend)
What if you’re not? *Whispered.*
Outside, a soft thunder rumbled in the distance. Not enough to rain. Just enough to promise that something was coming.
Elsewhere — 1:17 AM
Surya Raghuvanshi’s penthouse.
He stood on his private balcony, overlooking the skyline. One hand gripped a whiskey glass, the other resting on the cool railing.
He wasn’t drinking. Just holding. Like a habit.
The city below blinked in golden and blue dots. A plane blinked slowly across the sky.
And still… he couldn’t shake the feeling.
Even thinking it felt… like inhaling the first breath of winter. Icy and tender.
He’d tried searching for her online , found an old student portfolio, a Tumblr blog full of poetry and brush strokes.
No selfies. No filters. Just depth. Like she wasn’t trying to be seen by everyone , just by someone.
He didn’t know what he was doing. Why he was drawn to this stranger.
Why her painting made him feel like he was trying to hold onto something he hadn’t even received yet.
He didn’t believe in fate. Or destiny.
But he did believe in instinct.
He turned, walking back inside. On his sleek desk, his phone blinked.
One unread message on the company’s art sponsorship inbox. He opened it absently.
It was a thank-you note from the Kala Ghoda team.
But attached was a short list of artists his team had agreed to sponsor for a three-month gallery residency.
Name: Sameeksha Rathore
Status: Accepted.
Start Date: Next Week.
Location: Lower Parel , Raghuvanshi Residency Block.
His own art residency floor , the one his mother had insisted on opening for young talent last year.
Surya stared at the screen.
Heart.
Stopped.
Then racing.
She was going to be right there.
In his building.
In his orbit.
In his world.
Surya Raghuvanshi
*He whispered.*What the hell are you doing to me?
Meanwhile, in a quiet flat across the city, Sameeksha finally opened her messages. Typed.
And sent her reply to @unknown-soul.
I think I’ve been dreaming of it too.
And maybe… of you.
Author ✍️❤️
Is it boring.? 🥱
Author ✍️❤️
Bye bye , Mwaah cuties.
Author ✍️❤️
Also it’s a slow romance how it happens in reality.. With maybe a mix of spice and delusional world.
Author ✍️❤️
So please as it’s my first story keep supporting.
Author ✍️❤️
It will mean a lot to me.
Author ✍️❤️
My writing style is very different I know but I hope it’s not too bad.
Author ✍️❤️
Thank you for reading.
Comments