Until I Find My Star

Chapter 34

Author's Pov:

The days blurred together for Anu, but one day at home her mother tried to spoke with her.... tried to mend whatever was left hanging.

And her father... who she loved more than anything behaved as though she never existed... as if silence could erase the truth. He'd come home from work, read the newspaper, eat his dinner, and go to bed, never sparing her more than a glance.

How could he be this indifference towards her? Does she mean anything to him? Is she even his daughter? or Is this the way every girls parents would react? or her case was different?

Her mother on the other hand, however, was different. Every few nights, when the silence felt unbearable, she would knock gently on her door, which she ignored not even bothering to respond, but today it was different. She forget to lock the door and her mom taking that advantage came inside.

"Anu... can I sit with you?" her mother whispered, clutching the edge of the bed like a lifeline as if she will break.

She didn't look up from her notebook. She pretended to write, though the page was empty.

"You're... you don't eat- I mean you're not eating properly anymore," her mother murmured. "Mere bacha... look at you... you've grown so thin... people will ask questions. I mean they're already asking..."

She scoffed in disbelief, those traitor tears stung near her eyes but she doesn't want her to see her vulnerable and she doesn't want anyone to see that it still affects her. Her words were well-meaning, but they stabbed her very deeply.

People. Always people. Always society. Never her.

She shut the notebook and slid under the blanket pulling it over her head, her back turned. Her mother stayed for a few more minutes, staring at her with a teary eyes, but eventually left with quiet footsteps.

The distance between them only widened.

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College wasn't kinder.

The taunts grew sharper. Girls in her class whispered behind cupped hands, then laughed too loudly when she passed.

And Vikram, he never interfere when someone teases her, to him it's harmless as long as they kept their distance with her. If anything, he was actually proud to call him hers, just as he did in claiming her.

Some called her 'Vikram's girl' openly, voices sweetened with mockery.

A few boys mimicked in Vikram's tone, smirking 'Where are you going, Anu? I missed you, babe. Here 'mmuuaahh' 'mmuuaahh' and then they will start laughing making her heart clench in pain.

Is this how her pain looks like? Does no one see how he's forcing her? or how she tried to avoid him? Each word scraped against her like sandpaper. She kept her eyes down, her pace steady. But the humiliation clung to her skin, heavy as a bruise.

Worse than the gossip was Vikram himself. He seemed to revel in it, feeding on the power their whispers gave him. He never hid his control over her

One afternoon, after class, his friends dragged chairs together in the courtyard, filling the air with laughter. She tried to slip past quietly, but his voice cut through.

"There she is," he said lazily, leaning back in his chair, legs stretched out. "My girl doesn't even say hello anymore."

The group chuckled. One of them whistled low, another murmured something that made them all grin making her froze for a moment, heart hammering. She wanted to run, but his eyes pinned her in place... dark, sharp, burning with a mix of possession and amusement.

"Come here, babe" he ordered softly, but loud enough for everyone to hear.

Her hands trembled. Every instinct screamed at her to refuse, to walk away. But she couldn't-not with his friends watching, not with the memory of what he could do when no one else was around. Slowly, she moved closer, her throat dry.

Vikram smirked, satisfied. He reached out casually, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, his touch lingering far too long. Even if he's sitting, she feels small. His friends exchanged glances, some smirking, others half-awkward, but none dared to interfere.

"Come sit?" Vikram drawled titling his head, eyes never leaving hers patting his lap.

Heat rushed to Anu's cheeks not from affection, but from humiliation so sharp it made her dizzy. She hated him. She hated his friends. She hated herself for standing there, for enduring it.

Not wanting to anger him, she sat on his lap quietly while he started twirling her hair while talking to his friends. When he finally let her go, she walked away without a word, and the sound of their laughter chasing her down the corridor.

Even if they're not talking or laughing about her, her skin crawls in disgust about herself. It made her uneasy. It makes her think they're talking and laughing at her state.

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At night, in the hollow silence of her room, she would stare at the ceiling and count the days left. Just 41 days more. Only 41 days, and he would graduate. Then she could breathe again.

But even as she clung to that fragile hope, another fear grew inside her. His obsession wrapped around her tighter every day, as though he was planting himself not just in her college life but in her future.

Not wanting to think anything she turned around and lied down as sleep engulfed her.

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✨ Hola,

✨ So how was the chapter?

✨ The next chapter 35, 36 & 37 are in scrolstck.

Until then,
Jenikim7 ❤️