"You...?"Shrey tried to say something in excitement, but Prakhar cut him off.
"I've told you as much as was necessary. And no need for this 'you-you' formality… You can speak casually too."
"Oh really...? I was only planning to give you that respect for two days anyway, if you don't want it—then that's fine..."Shrey replied cheekily, making Prakhar glare at him.
"So shouldn't you be in Udaipur with the king?" Shrey asked.
"I've been punished... to stay away from him."
"Punished for what?"
"For a mistake."
"But what mistake?"
Prakhar fell silent. Shrey understood he didn't want to talk about it and stayed quiet too.
Just then, the bakery owner arrived, handed out popcorn, pastries, and Coke to everyone, and sat next to Prakhar.
Shrey looked at him for a moment, then turned back to watch the movie.
"Kunwar is here..."The bakery owner said softly. Prakhar smiled.No matter how many tricks Kunwar played, he would never figure out where Prakhar was right now...
Meanwhile, Kunwar sat downstairs in the restaurant area, staring at a chip he'd found—the one he had hidden in Prakhar's clothes. It led him to the spot where Prakhar had left with the others.
Prakhar had no phone, no other device with him.He had switched it off on the way.
The bakery owner whispered a few more things to him and quickly walked downstairs to the restaurant area.
"Welcome, Kunwar Sa..."He greeted, sitting across from the visibly fuming Kunwar.
"Advait..."Kunwar grabbed his collar.
"Where is Prakhar?"
"You came all this way to ask something I could've easily answered on a simple call or text..."
Kunwar squinted his eyes.
"Where. Is. He."
"I don't know," Advait said—barely had he finished when Kunwar landed a knee into his stomach.
"Aah…"Advait fell to the ground.
"Ready to talk now, or do you fancy a trip to the hospital?"
"If you think you'll hear the truth from me, you're welcome to send me to the cremation grounds, not just the hospital..."
Kunwar kicked him again in the stomach. Advait curled into a ball. Kunwar grabbed his hair and hissed —
"You think if you don't tell me, I won't find him? I know he's with that Shrey... Shrey Thakur..."
He watched Advait's face closely.
But there was no sign of fear or panic.
Kunwar suddenly let go and stormed out.
Advait, lying on the floor, smiled and muttered —
"Fear… fear is your power, Kunwar. You use it to extract truth, to make people obey. You crave to be the best. You're a bloody narcissist. But trapping me? That's beyond your reach... because I'm a nihilist."
For readers:
This section introduces some psychological terms, so let's simplify:
A narcissist is someone who is excessively self-obsessed, often lacks empathy, and believes they are superior to others. They crave admiration and think they are the center of the world, often ignoring the emotions or needs of those around them.
A nihilist, on the other hand, is someone who believes life has no inherent meaning, purpose, or value. They see religion, morality, and society as man-made illusions. Emotions, relationships, and love are considered temporary distractions. A nihilist does not believe in good or evil, right or wrong—they view everything as meaningless, and all beliefs as changeable perspectives.
Advait wiped the blood from his lips and got back behind the counter like nothing had happened...
After the movie...
Prakhar took the group into a private area inside the bakery that belonged to Advait—his personal space.Advait was cooking for everyone. Prakhar helped, then called the others to eat.
"Yummy…"Pranay said while eating."Makes me wanna kiss the hands that made this."
Advait held out his hand.
"Yuck..."Pranay made a disgusted face.
After the meal, everyone returned home.Prakhar asked them to go ahead while he parked the car. The three went up to the flat.
Just as Prakhar was about to head toward the lift after parking, someone grabbed his arm.
Prakhar quickly twisted the arm and pinned the person back.
"You found me faster than I expected, Kunwar..."Prakhar whispered near his ear. Kunwar's eyes widened.
"You can't run from me… In the end, you'll always come back to me... You're mine..."Kunwar growled, gritting his teeth.
"And what if I kill one of the royal family's great figures? Then I'll no longer be your slave..."
Kunwar's eyes grew even wider.
"Don't you dare..."
"You're forcing me..."
Kunwar yanked his hand free and leaned in.
"This courage... it's for that Shrey, isn't it? Hmm…?"
"No... it's for freedom."
"And all this time, you never wanted freedom. So now what? Should I believe you've started to actually want to live?"
"Kunwar... the Prakhar you knew died the day he entered that palace. He had no dreams, no desires. Just like a body without a soul is merely a corpse... today's Prakhar is also just a corpse.But now... I can't bear to see anyone else die because of me. Otherwise, I don't know what I might do..."
He shoved Kunwar slightly and turned to walk away.
Kunwar stared at him —For the first time in 12 years, he had heard Prakhar raise his voice… louder than he could tolerate.
"Kunwar..."A voice called from behind — it was Shrey.
"What are you doing here..."Prakhar asked sharply.
"Uh... my phone..."Shrey said, grabbing it from the backseat of the car.
"Hello, cutie pie…"Kunwar pinched Shrey's cheeks playfully, and Prakhar's temple vein throbbed. He turned his face away.
"Hi... You're here?"Shrey asked hesitantly.
"Yes, I came to see my boyfriend..."Kunwar replied deliberately, eyes on Prakhar.
Shrey's gaze flicked from Kunwar to Prakhar.
Prakhar caught that and said in a sharp tone —"You know him, Shrey?"
"Yeah... he's my professor..."Shrey replied softly.
Prakhar was silent for a moment, then gave a slight smile.
"Oh... then maybe you don't know his full identity. He is the Prince of Udaipur — Kunwar Abhyavat."
Shrey's eyes widened in disbelief.
Kunwar clenched his teeth —He had come to tease Shrey, but Prakhar just exposed his secret instead.
Prakhar gently placed a hand on Shrey's shoulder —Kunwar's eyes lit with fury.
"He wants to meet his boyfriend, Shrey… let's give them some privacy,"Prakhar said, pressing lightly on Shrey's shoulder to guide him away.
"Prakhar!"Kunwar shouted from behind.
"Yes, Kunwar?"Prakhar replied, calm and steady.
"I need to talk about Raja Saheb. Come with me..."
Prakhar stopped. Without turning around, he said —
"Perhaps you've forgotten… So let me remind you — I've been suspended from all royal duties.I'm only responsible for Raja Saheb's security.And that's exactly what I'm doing."
Kunwar clenched his jaw, veins popping in his hands.
For the first time, the plan he'd crafted had turned against him.