"How Dare You?" Arjun grits his teeth looking at Ridu.

Ridu looks shocked seeing him here in this college which she didn't expect at all.

Apu is scared seeing him and said "Sorry" on behalf of Ridu but Ridu stopped her saying, "Hey, why did you say sorry to him? We didn't do any mistakes and he is the one who bumped into us and now we lost our food. He is the one who should say sorry to us"

Apu's eyes widen upon hearing her and she looks at Arjun who is already in anger looking at Ridu dangerously.

Arjun strode towards her angrily but stopped seeing Aravind coming towards them and gets shocked seeing Arjun's state. He looked at Ridu and Arjun understanding what just had happened.

Ridu is surprised to see Aravind and looks at him with a shy, Apu patted lightly on her shoulder seeing her staring at him.

One of Arjun's friends told Aravind that Ridu is the one who pushed Arjun on the road. Aravind understood the meaning of Arjun's murderous look towards Ridu, he immediately turned to Ridu, "Sorry for the food, I'll pay for you. Please get another plate and have your lunch"

Ridu immediately said, "No, it's ok. I can pay for myself" she nodded with a smile and left from there.

She keeps turning back and looks at Aravind with a smile walking away from that place without even being aware of a ferocious look from Arjun at her.

"I'm not going to leave her" Arjun muttered and stormed away from that place before Aravind catch him.

Aravind gets tensed knowing Arjun's temper and looked at the way both left and thinks to himself, "I have to save her from his wrath"

********

"What was that?" Apu questioned Ridu looking at her blushing.

Ridu, "What?"

Apu, "This blush, your shy smile looking at Aravind. What was that?"

Ridu didn't reply anything but just gave her smile as an answer.

Apu, "Something is cooking up, i guess. Isn't it?"

Ridu, "Nothing"

Apu, "It's ok to tell me. No need to hide from me"

Ridu, "What's there to hide? I just smiled at him. That's it"

Apu, "It doesn't seem like that. The way you saw him and blushed, the way he gazed at you seeing you blushing and I did notice a change in his reaction which is not a normal thing that happened with Aravind."

Ridu, "Why do you say so?"

Apu, "Because, he never did so"

Ridu, "Stop it Apu. You are too much of your imagination. Please, stop this topic right here"

Apu shrugged her shoulders seeing her trying hard to hide her blush and stopped discussing it further.

They both finished their lunch and moved to their classes. But Ridu couldn't stop thinking about Aravind and smiled to herself but at the same, she couldn't stop seeing Arjun's visuals and got tensed.

****

Aravind tried his best to convince Arjun to calm down but at no point, it is happening. Arjun's anger caused him to break the tables kept in his classroom shocking the other students. At one glance from him, everyone turned away and focused on their work. 

Aravind, "Are you insane?"

Arjun glared at him angrily and moved close to him whispering, "She pushed me down on the road in front of the crowd when I beat him to a pulp, just for you"

Aravind, "I didn't ask you to beat him. And first of all, why did you do that?" he asked him angrily.

Arjun, "If you don't tell me, will I not know that he insulted you?"

Aravind, "He insulted me, not you. OK?"

Arjun gets hurt by his words and gritted his teeth saying, "I don't see the difference"

Aravind felt bad for his own words and tried to console him when Arjun turned his back to walk away, but he stopped there and turned towards him saying, "I would have left him if he insulted me, but he spoke badly about you. I will never leave anyone who affronts you"

Arjun walked away from the room leaving his friend there who stares at him emotionally and feels guilty for his words.

********

In the evening, Arjun along with his other buddy Kishore thinks to harm Ridu at any cost but without Aravind's knowledge. While doing so, they both saw her walking out of the college bidding bye to her friend Apu.

She smiles thinking about Aravind and missed to notice a car that is coming behind her fastly. Before she could turn around to see what was happening, a car skidded past her, splashing water on the road.

She was completely drenched in dirty water and yelled looking at the car. It stopped right there and she is shocked to see Arjun and his friend Kishore getting out of the car and having a smirk on their face.

"Ouch" Kishore looked at her condition and looked at Arjun, "Poor girl, how can she go home now? Her clothes are completely wet. If she walks on the road like this, won't everyone look at her and laugh?"

Arjun chuckles looking at her state and said, "Don't even try to mess with me" he signed his friend to get in the car and he drove away leaving her right there.

Ridu wanted to cry out loud but she managed to control her emotions and started walking towards her home ignoring everyone's gaze at her. 

When she reached home, Madhi and Vani looked at her shocked, and asked what happened. "You brought me here to get humiliated like this, right?" Mritula asked her mother with such hatred and continued, "If my dad would be here with me, he wouldn't have allowed this to happen to me" and hurried into her room and slammed the door.

Mathi is distraught and broke down in tears seeing the way her daughter rushed to her room. Vani hold her hands tightly assuring that she is with her and wiped her tears saying, "She is a kid. She doesn't know the truth right, leave it. Don't cry, Mathi"

There in Ridu's room, she cried remembering the incident and how people on the road commented on her and laughed at her, even some guys, who gave her disgusting looks at her.

Later in the night, she stood on her balcony staring at the view of the sea and said to herself, "It would be better if you don't mess with me" she smirks.

The next day, Arjun reached his college along with Aravind and parked his car in his allotted place. They walked towards their classroom and joined their other friends.

Kishore whispered, "Arjun, I didn't see her yet. Do you think, she will come to college again?"

Arjun, "She won't mess with me again. If she comes again and stays within her limits then she's safe" he winks at him.

The whole day, Arjun and Kishore didn't find Ridu anywhere in the college and thought that she's left and won't come again.  As usual, Arjun & Aravind goes to his car where it is parked, surprised to see many students surrounding his car.

He cleared everyone and looked at his car. He looked at it with a murderous look in his eyes. Aravind stood beside him and tried to touch him but hesitated to proceed knowing his anger very well, meanwhile his other friends have also come there. They stood frozen seeing Arjun's car being dumped full of garbage.

Ridu happily walked towards her home eating a scoop of her favorite ice cream.

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Here is the next chapter, hope you all like it. Pls, share your views.