FF: Always You - Chapter 5 page 3 posted - 1st Oct- Page 3

Both are noticing each other and are irritated by people who are interested in the other. There is jealousy going on on both sides.

Aha

Crazy right how everyone around them can see how much these two affect each other but ofcourae these two will not accept that fact atleast not get

jealous for sure on both sides

Love it

Glad geet is standing up more for herself and is more confident about her looks and abilities

Chapter 4

Both Maan and Geet has moments of jealousy

while either of them speak to their friend

girls seem to like to be around Maan

while boys now are giving Geet the attention she deserves

Loving the story so much and enjoying reading a new story after so long. I’ve always been a fan of Maaneet childhood stories.
And this is just so good. Like a slow burn, slowly Maan realising what she means to him. Eager eager for the next

Chapter 5 - You Don't Own Me

By the time Geet turned 15, the attention she received from boys had stopped feeling surprising enough for Meera to point it out every time somebody smiled at her across a classroom, because what had once been an occasional compliment had become ordinary enough that Geet no longer automatically assumed friendliness when a boy found unnecessary reasons to walk beside her, asked for her number despite already having access to the school group chat or suddenly developed an intense interest in whatever subject she happened to be studying.

Unlike the year before, however, Geet was no longer completely indifferent to all of it.

She still had no interest in collecting admirers simply because they were available, nor had she become somebody who measured her confidence according to how many boys looked at her when she walked into a room, but she had finally reached the point where she could admit that being liked felt good, especially when she remembered how different that attention had once been.

For years, boys noticing her had usually meant somebody laughing because she was eating again, calling her ladoo or making some unimaginative comment about her weight, while Maan had contributed enough versions of football to last several lifetimes. Geet had grown beyond allowing any of those things to define her, but the memories had not disappeared entirely, which meant there was still something strangely satisfying about somebody looking at her now and seeing a girl they wanted to impress rather than one they wanted to tease. She appreciated it.

Sometimes, when she liked the person giving her that attention, she even reciprocated.

Vivaan Malhotra was the 1st boy who made her want to.

He was in the year above her, although they had met through a combined student committee organising the school charity event, and where Geet had initially assumed his habit of appearing beside her after meetings was coincidence, even she had been forced to reconsider when Vivaan started bringing an extra hot chocolate because he had apparently remembered she disliked coffee. Meera had noticed immediately.

They were sitting at the Handa kitchen island one Saturday afternoon, supposedly revising while Pammi worked through a catering order at the dining table, when Geet's phone vibrated beside her notebook for the 3rd time in less than 10 minutes.

Meera looked towards it.

Geet ignored her.

The phone vibrated again.

Meera slowly placed her pen down.

Geet continued writing.

When the phone buzzed a 5th time, Meera leaned across and attempted to see the screen before Geet caught it and pulled it towards her chest.

“Do you mind?” Geet asked as she gave her best friend an unimpressed look, although the smile she was already trying to hide made the question considerably less threatening.

Meera rested both elbows against the counter and gave her a knowing expression. “I mind enormously because you have spent the last 20 minutes pretending you're revising while smiling at your phone every 3 minutes, and I would like to know whether Vivaan has finally worked up the courage to ask you out properly.”

Geet stared at her for a second before looking back towards the notebook. “My hearing is perfect, but I'm just choosing not to listen to what you have to say,” Geet remarked as she reached towards the fruit bowl and picked up an apple, deliberately concentrating on it as though examining the skin required her full attention.

Meera's smile widened. “That means yes.”

“It means you're nosy.”

“It means I know you.”

“It means you need hobbies that don't involve my life.”

Meera reached for Geet's phone again, but Geet moved it further away before taking an exaggerated bite of the apple.

Pammi glanced up from the paperwork spread across the dining table and looked between both girls. “Who is Vivaan?” she asked, and the immediate change in Geet's expression made Meera burst out laughing.

Geet turned slowly towards her mother. “Nobody.”

Meera nearly fell sideways against the counter.

Pammi raised one eyebrow.

Geet pointed the apple towards Meera in warning. “Do not.”

Meera pressed one hand against her chest as she attempted to control her laughter. “I wasn't going to say anything.”

“You were absolutely going to say something.”

“I was breathing.”

Geet narrowed her eyes. “You and your brother both become deeply irritating when you use that excuse.”

At the mention of Maan, Meera's amusement increased rather than faded, which immediately made Geet suspicious.

Before she could question her, Pammi repeated, “Who is Vivaan?” while folding her arms and waiting with considerably more patience than Geet deserved.

Geet sighed and turned towards her mother. “He's from school, Mumma, and before you ask 40 questions, he's in the year above, we've been talking for a few weeks and he asked whether I wanted to go out for something to eat next Saturday.”

Pammi studied her daughter's face for a moment before asking, “And do you want to?”

Geet's response came more easily than she expected. “Yes.”

That single admission made something flutter pleasantly inside her stomach.

Pammi's expression softened almost immediately, and instead of reacting with the interrogation Geet had anticipated, she simply asked where they were going, what time Geet planned to return and whether Yash knew.

Geet's mouth twisted. “Why does Yash need to know?”

“Because he is your brother.”

“That is not a legal qualification.”

From the hallway, Yash's voice appeared before he did. “What am I apparently not qualified for?”

Geet closed her eyes.

Meera looked delighted.

Yash entered the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and glanced between the 3 women with immediate suspicion. “Why does Geet look guilty?”

“I don't look guilty,” Geet replied as she took another bite of her apple.

“You look like you got caught.”

“I didn't get caught doing anything.”

Pammi smiled as she returned to her papers. “Your sister has a date next Saturday.”

Yash nearly dropped the bottle.

Geet stared at her mother in betrayal.

Meera lowered her forehead against the counter while laughing.

“Mumma!”

Pammi shrugged innocently. “What? He was going to find out.”

Yash looked towards Geet. “A date?”

Geet straightened defensively. “Yes, Yash, a date. People have them.”

“Who?”

“Vivaan.”

“Vivaan who?”

“Malhotra.”

Yash frowned as though searching through some mental database. “From your school?”

Geet pointed the half-eaten apple towards him. “You see, this is exactly what I was trying to avoid.”

Yash ignored the accusation and asked, “How old is he?”

Meera looked towards Geet with silent sympathy.

Geet closed her eyes again. “He's 16.”

Yash nodded once.

Geet opened one eye.

Her brother took another drink.

She opened the other.

“That’s it?” Geet asked suspiciously.

Yash lowered the bottle and shrugged. “Do you like him?”

Geet hesitated only briefly before nodding. “I think so.”

“Then go.”

Geet looked at him surprised and he only stared back nonchalantly.

After several seconds, she asked “Who are you and what have you done with my brother?” she mockingly looked around as if searching for her actual brother to turn up.

Yash laughed as he leaned one hip against the counter. “I'm not Papa, Geet. You're 15, not 5, and if you're going somewhere public, Mumma and Papa know where you are and you're comfortable, then I'm not going to interrogate somebody because he asked you to eat” he explained.

Geet's expression softened before she smiled. “Thank you.”

Yash pointed towards her. “I reserve the right to change my mind if he's an idiot.”

“There it is” she muttered rolling her eyes as he grinned.

“That's reasonable.”

Meera agreed nodding her head solemnly. “Very reasonable.”

Geet looked between them and muttered that everybody around her had developed an unhealthy interest in her personal life before turning back towards her notebook.

The front door opened several minutes later.

She knew who it was without looking.

Maan had reached the point where he entered the Handa home with so little ceremony that even Pammi no longer bothered asking who had arrived unless the voice was unfamiliar, and within seconds he appeared in the kitchen alongside Aditya, both having apparently come to drag Yash out somewhere.

Maan's gaze moved across the room before settling on Geet.

“Why do you look miserable?” he asked as he reached into the fruit bowl and stole the apple she had placed down.

Geet immediately stared at his hand. “That was mine.”

Maan took a bite. “You stopped eating it.”

“I put it down for approximately 10 seconds.”

“Abandoned property.”

“You are a thief” she grumbled looking at him in annoyance.

Maan leaned against the opposite side of the counter and took another bite while giving her a completely unrepentant smile. “Sue me.”

Geet reached towards the bowl and took another apple instead. “One day somebody will humble you. Mark my words” she remarked biting into her new apple.

Maan's eyes moved over her face with amusement. “You've been saying that for years.”

“And one day I'll finally be right” she added.

Aditya, who had been opening a cupboard in search of snacks, looked towards Meera and asked what they had been discussing before the boys arrived.

Meera opened her mouth ready to spill everything out.

Geet pointedly looked at her in warning. “Don't.”

Maan's gaze shifted between them and straightened looking at them with a focused gaze. “What?” he asked. “What are you hiding?”

“Nothing,” Geet replied.

Meera looked amused but quickly tried to hide her amusement seeing Geet narrow her eyes. Yash also made the mistake of smiling and Geet shook her head cursing them both internally. Maan noticed everything. The amusement, the smile, the shifty way Geet was behaving and looking more interested in the book in front of her.

“What happened?” he asked once more.

“Nothing happened,” Geet insisted as she deliberately turned another page in her textbook.

Aditya looked towards Yash. “Why are you smiling?”

Yash shrugged. “Geet has a date next week.”

The atmosphere in the room shifted subtly. Pammi continued working without interruption. Aditya immediately smiled, while Meera turned her attention toward Maan. Geet stopped turning the page, and Maan paused while chewing.

His gaze moved slowly from Yash towards Geet.

“A date?” Maan repeated looking surprised.

Geet sighed because apparently she was destined to repeat the conversation until every person in Delhi had been individually informed. “Yes, Maan, a date.”

“With who?”

Geet looked down at her textbook. “Vivaan.”

“Vivaan who?”

She lifted her gaze towards him. “Why does everybody ask the surname as though I'm about to submit him for a background check?”

Maan ignored the complaint. “Vivaan Malhotra?”

Geet frowned. “You know him?”

“I know who he is.”

Of course he did.

Geet leaned back against the stool and folded her arms. “Wonderful. That should save you several hours of unnecessary investigation.”

Maan looked towards Yash instead. “You're letting her go?”

Geet's mouth fell open.

Yash stared at his friend.

Aditya slowly stepped away from the cupboard with his packet of crisps because the conversation had become more interesting than food.

Yash asked, “What do you mean, letting her?”

Maan gestured towards Geet. “She's 15.”

Geet immediately sat straighter. “I'm sitting right here.”

“I can see you.”

“Then perhaps stop discussing me as though I'm a family pet somebody is asking permission to walk.”

Maan looked towards her. “I'm saying you're young.”

“And Vivaan is 16, not 40.”

“That isn't the point.”

Geet lifted her eyebrows. “Then what is the point?”

Maan opened his mouth.

Nothing convincing emerged. He turned to Yash. “You don’t know him.”

“Geet does,” Yash replied calmly.

Maan disliked the answer, he expected Yash to be proactive and ban her from going out on dates. He would be doing the same with Meera, though his sister will kick his ass for it but it’s the principle of being a big brother and banning them from dating.

Geet noticed Maan’s disappointed face and for reasons she couldn’t explain nor understand yet, she had enjoyed it.

The following Saturday, Vivaan arrived on time.

That alone earned him approximately 20 points with Pammi and Mohinder, particularly because he came to the door instead of sending Geet a message from outside as she had expected. Geet had spent considerably longer choosing her clothes than she was willing to admit, eventually settling on jeans, a fitted cream top and a light jacket, while Meera had spent most of the afternoon sending messages asking for updates despite Geet repeatedly threatening to block her.

When the doorbell rang, Geet was halfway down the stairs but Mohinder reached the door first.

“Papa,” Geet warned from behind him.

He glanced over his shoulder innocently. “I'm opening my own front door.”

“You're enjoying this” she muttered climbing down the rest of the stairs.

“Immensely” he responded with an amused smile.

Pammi appeared from the kitchen and gave her husband a warning look before he could make the situation worse.

Vivaan greeted both parents politely enough that some of the tension left Geet's shoulders, and after a brief conversation about where they were going, Mohinder wished them a good evening without turning into the terrifying father Geet had feared he might become.

They left several minutes later.

The date was surprisingly easy.

Vivaan was funny without constantly trying to prove it, listened when Geet spoke and did not seem remotely intimidated when she disagreed with him, which happened often enough during dinner that by the time they left the restaurant, their conversation had already turned into a playful argument about whether horror films were actually frightening or simply ridiculous.

“You cannot call them ridiculous when you admitted you cover your eyes,” Vivaan argued as they walked through the public gardens near the restaurant.

Geet tucked her hands into the pockets of her jacket and looked towards him. “I cover my eyes because I don't want to watch somebody's head fall off while I'm eating popcorn.”

“That sounds like fear.”

“That sounds like standards.”

Vivaan laughed as he shook his head. “You have an answer for everything.”

“I've been told.”

“By Maan?”

The name caught Geet slightly off guard.

She looked towards Vivaan. “Why Maan specifically?”

Vivaan shrugged. “I've seen you arguing with him.”

Geet groaned. “That man is unfortunately unavoidable.”

“Man?” Vivaan repeated with amusement. “He's 18.”

“That doesn't stop him behaving like he's 48 whenever I do something he doesn't approve of.”

Vivaan laughed again before asking, “Is he your cousin or something?”

Geet's expression changed immediately. “No, absolutely not.”

“Brother?”

“No.”

Vivaan's eyebrows lifted.

Geet realised she had answered both questions far too quickly.

“Our families are close,” she explained as they continued walking. “His sister is my best friend, my brother is his best friend, our dads work together and we've basically grown up in each other's houses.”

“So he's family.”

Geet hesitated.

The answer should have been easy.

Instead, she replied, “Something like that.”

Vivaan nodded without pressing the subject.

They continued walking until they reached a quieter section of the gardens where several old trees bordered the path, and although there were still families and couples nearby, the crowd from the restaurant area had thinned considerably.

Geet liked being with him.

That was the conclusion she reached without much effort.

She liked the attention, liked the way Vivaan made it obvious he was interested without making her uncomfortable and liked that, for once, she was simply a girl on a date rather than somebody's little sister, childhood friend or former football.

When Vivaan looked at her, he did not appear to see the child she had been.

Geet appreciated that more than she expected.

What she did not know was that Maan had spent the previous 2 hours becoming increasingly irritable.

Yash and Maan had been meeting Aditya nearby when Yash suggested they stop at the same café inside the gardens before heading home, and neither had any idea Geet and Vivaan were there until Maan spotted them walking along one of the paths.

He stopped halfway through whatever he had been saying.

Yash followed his gaze.

Geet was laughing.

Vivaan was walking beside her.

Yash immediately understood what had happened and continued moving. “Come on.”

Maan remained where he was.

Yash looked back. “Maan.”

“That's Vivaan.”

“Yes.”

“You knew they were coming here?”

Yash shrugged. “Geet told Mumma where they were going.”

Maan's expression tightened. “Why didn't you tell me?”

Yash stared at him. “Why would I tell you where my sister is going on a date?”

The question irritated Maan because he did not have a reasonable answer.

He eventually started walking again, although instead of heading towards the café, his attention remained fixed on Geet and Vivaan as they disappeared further along the path.

Yash noticed.

“You're being strange,” he commented.

Maan looked towards him. “I'm not being strange.”

“You've spent the last minute staring at my sister.”

“I was looking at Vivaan.”

“That is not better.”

Maan ignored him and continued walking.

Yash sighed.

Several minutes later, they rounded another section of the path and spotted them again.

This time Geet and Vivaan had stopped beneath one of the large trees.

Vivaan stood close to her.

Geet was smiling.

Maan slowed.

Yash noticed immediately and muttered, “Don't.”

Maan looked towards him. “Don't what?”

“Whatever you're about to do.”

“I'm not doing anything.”

Yash gave him a look that made it obvious he did not believe a word.

Under the tree, Vivaan said something that made Geet laugh quietly before his expression softened.

Geet's smile faded into something smaller.

More nervous.

Vivaan stepped closer.

Geet did not move away.

Maan felt something hot and immediate tear through his chest.

Vivaan lifted one hand towards Geet's face, hesitating before brushing a strand of hair away from her cheek.

Geet looked up at him.

The distance between them shortened.

Maan saw red.

“Geet.”

His voice cut across the space between them with enough force that Geet jerked back in surprise.

Vivaan turned.

Geet's expression shifted from confusion to horror the moment she saw Maan striding towards them with Yash following several steps behind.

“Maan?” Geet demanded, disbelief rapidly becoming anger. “What are you doing here?”

Maan barely looked at her before his gaze fixed on Vivaan. “What exactly were you doing?”

Vivaan stared at him. “Excuse me?”

Geet stepped immediately between them. “He was on a date with me, which you already know, so perhaps you could stop behaving like you've discovered a criminal offence.”

Maan's jaw tightened. “I was talking to him.”

“No, you're speaking over me while interrogating my date.”

Vivaan looked increasingly uncomfortable.

Yash reached them and immediately caught Maan lightly by the arm. “Maan, leave it.”

Maan turned towards him. “Did you not see what he was doing?”

Yash looked at his friend for a long moment. “I saw 2 teenagers on a date.”

“He was about to kiss her.”

Geet's face heated immediately, partly from embarrassment and mostly from fury. “Why are you announcing that to the entire park?”

Maan turned towards her. “Because apparently I'm the only person here who thinks that's a problem.”

Yash's expression changed.

He let go of Maan and looked towards Geet instead.

“Geet, come here for a second,” Yash said gently, gesturing towards a spot several feet away.

She glared at Maan before following her brother.

Yash waited until they were far enough that Vivaan and Maan could not easily hear before lowering his voice. “Are you okay?”

The question immediately softened some of Geet's anger.

“Yes.”

“Were you comfortable?”

Geet nodded. “Yes.”

“Did you want him to kiss you?”

Heat returned to her cheeks, but she refused to behave as though she had something to be ashamed of. “Yes.”

Yash studied her expression for another moment before nodding.

“Okay.”

Geet blinked. “Okay?”

Yash gave her a small smile. “I just needed to know you were fine. If you wanted it, then it's your choice.”

Relief mixed with affection inside her chest.

Geet looked over Yash's shoulder towards Maan, who was still standing several feet away with his arms folded while Vivaan looked as though he was reconsidering every decision that had led him there.

Her anger returned immediately.

“Then please take him away,” Geet told Yash as she pointed towards Maan. “Before I push him into that pond.”

Yash almost smiled. “I was already planning to.”

Geet caught his sleeve before he turned away. “I'm serious, Bhai. Take him home.”

Yash squeezed her shoulder. “I will.”

Geet walked back towards Vivaan while Yash moved directly towards Maan.

“She’s fine,” Yash told him quietly.

Maan looked past him towards Geet. “That doesn't mean…”

“Yes, it does,” Yash interrupted, his tone remaining calm despite the irritation beginning to show. “I asked her whether she was comfortable. She said yes.”

Maan looked towards him sharply. “You asked her if she wanted him to kiss her?”

“Yes.”

“And?”

Yash stared at him. “That is her business.”

Maan's jaw hardened. “She's 15.”

Yash's patience started thinning. “And he's 16, Maan. They're not doing anything outrageous. They nearly kissed.”

“You're her brother.”

“Exactly,” Yash replied, stepping slightly closer so they could keep the conversation between themselves. “Which is why I asked if she was okay instead of deciding for her.”

Maan looked towards Geet again.

Vivaan had said something quietly.

Geet smiled apologetically.

Maan hated the sight.

Yash noticed.

“Maan, we're leaving.”

“I'm not leaving her here.”

“Yes, you are.”

Maan turned towards him in disbelief. “You're serious?”

Yash folded his arms. “Completely.”

“She asked you to take me away?”

Yash's silence answered him.

Maan laughed once without humour and shook his head. “Unbelievable.”

“What is unbelievable is you acting more possessive over my sister than I am.”

That landed.

Maan's eyes narrowed. “I'm not possessive.”

Yash gave him a long look.

“Fine,” Yash replied eventually. “Then leaving shouldn't be difficult.”

Maan stared at him.

Yash stared back.

Neither moved for several seconds.

Finally, Maan turned and started walking.

Yash followed shaking his head at his friend.

They made it halfway down the path before Maan spoke again.

“You're too relaxed about this” he remarked looking disappointed at his friend.

Yash glanced towards him raising his brows. “And you're far too invested.”

“I'm protecting her.”

“From what?”

Maan's answer came instantly. “Boys.”

Yash actually laughed. “Excellent. Should I lock her inside until she's 30?”

“You know what I mean.”

“No, I don't,” Yash replied, and the humour disappeared from his voice as he stopped walking. “If Vivaan had pressured her, if she looked uncomfortable or if she asked for help, I would have been the 1st person there, but she didn't. She wanted to be there.”

Maan looked away.

Yash continued, quieter now. “She's growing up, Maan.”

“I know.”

“Do you?”

Maan turned back towards him.

Yash studied his friend's face for several seconds before shaking his head. “Because you keep looking at her like she still belongs to the version of her you remember.”

“She doesn't belong to anybody.”

“Exactly.”

Maan's expression tightened.

Yash began walking again.

This time Maan followed in silence.

Geet tried to salvage the date.

She genuinely did.

Vivaan, to his credit, attempted to laugh the interruption off once Maan and Yash disappeared, and after Geet apologised approximately 6 times for something that was not remotely her fault, he assured her that she did not need to apologise at all.

For the next 20 minutes, they walked again.

The problem was that the moment had disappeared.

Every time Vivaan moved closer, Geet remembered Maan's voice cutting through the air.

Every time she tried to return to their earlier conversation, anger crawled back into her chest.

Eventually, Vivaan noticed.

“You want to go home, don't you?” he asked gently as they reached the exit of the gardens.

Geet sighed and looked towards him with genuine regret. “I'm sorry.”

Vivaan shook his head. “Stop apologising.”

“I was actually having a nice time before…”

“Before your terrifying family friend appeared out of nowhere and looked like he wanted to bury me under the tree?”

Despite herself, Geet laughed.

Vivaan smiled. “There. At least I got one more.”

Geet's expression softened. “I really am sorry.”

“I know,” Vivaan replied before slipping his hands into his jacket pockets. “And for what it's worth, I still want another date.”

Geet looked towards him.

The sincerity in his expression made her smile.

“I'd like that.”

Vivaan nodded before hesitating. “Preferably somewhere Maan doesn't know exists.”

Geet laughed again. “That might be difficult. Apparently he knows everybody's family history.”

They parted several minutes later.

Geet spent the journey home becoming angrier.

By the time she reached the Handa house, the annoyance she had pushed down all evening had developed into something far more explosive.

She stepped through the front door and heard voices from the living room.

Maan was there.

Of course he was.

Yash was there too, along with Aditya and Meera, while Pammi and Mohinder appeared to have gone upstairs.

Geet dropped her bag beside the entrance.

Meera looked towards her first.

One glance at Geet's face was enough to make her sit straighter.

Yash saw her next.

“Geet…”

She held up one hand. “Not you.”

Maan turned towards her.

Geet walked directly into the room.

“You,” she said, pointing towards him.

Maan stood slowly. “Me?”

“Yes, you.”

Aditya looked towards Meera questioningly.

Meera looked towards Yash with the same questioning look.

Yash closed his eyes briefly.

Maan folded his arms. “What now?”

That was the wrong question.

Geet's entire expression changed.

“What now?” she repeated, laughing in disbelief as she stopped several feet in front of him. “You humiliated me in the middle of my date, interrupted something that had absolutely nothing to do with you, interrogated Vivaan like he had committed some crime and then walked away as though you had every right to do it, and you're asking me what now?”

Maan's expression hardened. “I didn't humiliate you.”

“You shouted my name across the park while I was about to kiss someone.”

Aditya looked away immediately trying to hide a laugh as he was clearly entertained once again. Meera's eyes widened. Yash rubbed one hand across his face.

Maan's jaw tightened. “You don't need to announce that again.”

Geet stared at him. “You announced it first.”

“I was protecting you.”

“From what?” she crossed her arms and glared at him.

Maan opened his mouth but couldn’t come up with anything fast enough.

Geet did not give him time. “What were you protecting me from, huh? A mosquito bite? An alien invasion? A car coming to run me down?” she snapped.

“No, I was protecting you from…”

“From a boy I like?” she demanded cutting him off, stepping closer as her anger finally escaped every attempt at restraint. “From a kiss I wanted? From making a decision about my own life without checking whether Maan Singh Khurana approves first?”

Maan narrowed his eyes at her and snapped back. “You're 15.”

Geet threw both hands up. “Stop saying my age like I'm 6.”

“You are still young.”

“And you are 18, not my father.”

“I never said I was.”

“You don't need to say it because you behave like you have some authority over me every time a boy comes near me.”

Maan looked towards Yash as though expecting support.

Yash remained silent and looked away. He was so not getting involved between this.

Geet noticed and continued before Maan could involve him. “Do you know what Yash did when he saw us? He took me aside, asked whether I was okay, asked whether I was comfortable and then accepted my answer because he's my brother and still somehow understands that I'm a person capable of deciding whether I want someone to kiss me.”

Maan's expression darkened. “You think because Yash is fine with it, I should be too?”

Geet stared at him in disbelief. “Why do you need to be fine with it at all? Are you my dad? My brother? My uncle?”

The question landed between them.

Maan said nothing.

Geet stepped closer. “That is what I want you to explain to me,” she continued, her voice lowering even as the anger remained. “Why does it matter to you who I date? Why do you care who texts me, who asks me out, who I speak to at parties or whether somebody kisses me?” she inquired leaving very little space between them.

Maan's answer came automatically. “Because I care about you…”

“That was caring?”

“Yes, I care about you like… my little sister. I would do the same with Meera”.

Meera raised her brows. “No, you wouldn’t” she intervened. “I was kissing Liam a couple of weeks ago and you were like Ew and walked off”

Maan glared at his sister and turned back to Geet seeing her looking annoyed. “I didn’t” he muttered.

Geet's expression tightened. “You can care without controlling me and care from a distant” she stated through gritted teeth.

“I'm not controlling you.”

“You ruined my date.”

“Because I saw him…”

“About to kiss me,” Geet finished for him, pointing towards herself. “Yes, Maan. Me. Not you. I was there. I knew what was happening.”

Maan ran one hand through his hair and turned away briefly before looking back towards her. “You don't know what boys are like.”

Geet laughed sharply. “And you do because you are one?”

“Yes.”

“Then perhaps I should start following you around every time some girl hangs off your arm because apparently I need to protect you from yourself too.”

The reference to the family event made Maan pause.

Geet saw it.

Her eyes narrowed. “Exactly.”

“That is different.”

“Why?”

Maan said nothing.

Geet took another step towards him. “Why is it different when Rhea flirts with you? Why is it different when girls at school ask for your number? Why are you allowed to enjoy attention, but the moment I enjoy it, suddenly somebody needs to protect me?”

“Because you're…”

Maan stopped himself.

Geet's expression sharpened. “Because I'm what?”

He looked at her.

For years the answer would have been easy.

Younger.

Yash's sister.

Meera's best friend.

The girl who had grown up around him.

His football.

His Ladoo.

Practically family.

Practically his little sister.

The words did not come.

Geet waited, and when Maan remained silent, her frustration finally exploded.

“You do not own me, Maan,” she said, every word deliberate as she held his gaze. “You don't get to decide who I speak to, who I date or who I kiss just because you've known me longer than they have, and you don't get to spend years telling me to stop following you only to become angry the moment I build a life that doesn't revolve around you.”

Something in Maan's face changed.

Geet was too angry to notice.

“I don't revolve around you anymore,” she continued, and although her voice remained steady, the words carried years of history between them. “I don't need your permission. I don't need you deciding whether someone is good enough to talk to me, and I definitely don't need you charging into my dates because you suddenly can't handle the idea that somebody else likes me.”

“That isn't why.”

“Then tell me why.”

Maan stared at her.

He could not.

Geet laughed once, although there was no humour left in it. “Exactly.”

She turned away.

Maan caught her wrist before she could leave. The movement was instinctive. Geet stopped and looked down at his hand before slowly lifting her eyes towards him. Maan released her immediately. Geet's expression hardened further. “Stop doing that.”

His hand fell to his side.

For once, Maan looked genuinely uncertain.

Geet took another step backwards. “I like Vivaan. I liked being on that date, I wanted him to kiss me and none of that is something you get a vote on.”

The words hit Maan harder than they should have.

He felt the reaction physically.

A sharp, unpleasant twist beneath his ribs.

Geet noticed his silence but mistook it for stubbornness.

“If you actually care about me,” she said more quietly, although the anger had not disappeared, “then learn the difference between protecting me and controlling me.”

With that, Geet turned and walked towards the stairs.

This time Maan did not stop her.

The room remained silent until the sound of her bedroom door closing upstairs echoed faintly through the house.

Aditya exhaled slowly.

Meera looked towards her brother.

Yash leaned back against the sofa.

Maan remained standing in exactly the same place.

For several seconds, nobody spoke.

Eventually, Aditya cleared his throat and glanced at Yash. “I’m going to assume this is one of those moments when saying something funny would get me killed.”

Yash nodded. “Correct.”

Aditya sat down again.

Meera continued to watch Maan.

He noticed.

“What?” he asked, though his voice lacked its usual irritation.

Her expression softened slightly. “Nothing.”

Maan gave her a weary look. “Everyone has spent two years saying nothing while looking at me like that.”

Yash exhaled quietly.

Maan turned to him as he recollected his earlier argument with Yash came back to him with uncomfortable clarity.

You’re far too invested Yash had pointed out.

Maan lowered himself into a chair. For the first time that evening, his anger faded enough to make room for something else. He certainly was far too invested. He was right, but why was he invested?

He pictured Geet beneath the tree.

Vivaan standing close to her.

Vivaan touching her hair.

Geet looking up at him.

Geet wanting him to kiss her.

The same heat returned immediately.

Maan closed his eyes.

That was not protectiveness.

The realisation arrived so clearly that he almost rejected it on instinct.

He had spent years protecting Geet.

He had defended her when people insulted her, worried when she was hurt and interfered whenever he believed somebody might upset her.

That had always felt simple.

This was not simple.

He had not wanted Vivaan to step away because Geet looked uncomfortable.

She had not looked uncomfortable at all.

That had been the problem.

She had wanted Vivaan there.

Maan had hated that.

He had hated Aarav flirting with her at the family event, hated boys looking at her at school and hated watching her smile when somebody else complimented her.

Worse, he had liked discovering that she noticed Rhea.

He had enjoyed making Geet jealous.

A brother would not care whether his sister was jealous of another girl.

The thought was so obvious once it appeared that Maan felt almost stupid for not understanding it sooner.

He opened his eyes. Meera was still watching him.

Maan looked away first.

Memories began rearranging themselves without his permission.

Geet ignoring him when he called her football.

The irritation he felt when she stopped following him.

The way his attention found her in crowded rooms before he consciously looked.

The family photograph where he had apparently spent the flash looking at her instead of the camera.

The unfamiliar feeling when he caught her wrist.

The anger when another boy made her laugh.

The satisfaction when she noticed another girl beside him.

None of it belonged comfortably beneath the word brotherly.

Maan leaned forward and rested his forearms against his knees.

Yash studied him from across the room.

“You finally understand?” Yash asked quietly.

Maan looked towards him.

There was no teasing in Yash's expression now.

Maan did not answer immediately.

He looked towards the staircase Geet had disappeared up.

When he finally spoke, his voice was lower.

“I don't think I ever saw her as my sister.”

Yash's eyebrows lifted slightly.

Maan swallowed.

Saying it aloud made the realisation impossible to push away.

“She was always just Geet.”

Meera's expression softened.

Maan looked down at his hands.

The problem was no longer that Geet was growing up.

The problem was that somewhere along the way, without asking permission and without giving him enough warning to protect himself from it, the irritating little girl who had spent half her childhood chasing behind him had become the person his eyes searched for first.

He had spent years believing his possessiveness came from responsibility, while his irritation came from the fact that Geet was younger, impulsive and someone he had always felt responsible for.

Now he understood why none of those explanations had ever quite fitted.

Maan had not seen red beneath that tree because Vivaan was about to kiss someone he considered family.

He had seen red because Vivaan was about to kiss Geet.

And Maan had wanted, with an intensity that unsettled him, to be the person standing in Vivaan's place.

Ohhh he finally realized!! And how beautifully the whole thing was written! His jealousy, Yash and Meera’s quiet understanding of what he felt like, and finally the last line had me swooning 😍 loving it!!!