00:29:51
The countdown ticked on in blood-red numbers.
Arpan couldn't hear anything else. Not the low hum of the generator. Not the sound of his own breath, ragged and shallow. Not the faint clicking of security cameras watching them like hungry eyes.
Only the countdown.
Each second—a noose tightening.
"Where is that room?" he asked hoarsely.
Samruddhi shook her head, frantic. "I—I don't know. It looks like our school, but…"
Arpan narrowed his eyes. There were markings on the chalkboard—words scribbled in white chalk.
"One love must die, or all will burn."
Underneath it, a line written in a familiar handwriting.
"Your ghost doesn't get to keep her, Arpan. I do."—Rivan
Arpan stood, wincing from the pain in his shoulder, blood still soaking his sleeve. "We're running out of time."
Samruddhi clenched her fists. "This is all my fault. I believed him."
"You were hurt," Arpan said. "He used that. You're not the one pulling the strings. He is."
She turned to him, fire in her eyes. "And yet it's me who pointed the gun at you. Me who let the countdown start. So tell me, how do we stop this now?"
Arpan stared at the screen again. The camera panned slowly—showing their friends unconscious, blindfolded, duct tape over their mouths. Every chair had wires running from its legs. Arpan's heart dropped when he saw Rohini Ma'am—Samruddhi's mother—still and fragile, a single tear on her cheek.
And then—
The feed glitched.
And Rivan appeared.
Live.
Wearing a school uniform like a mockery of their past. Shirt half-buttoned. Tie loose. His eyes gleaming with deranged joy.
"Time's ticking, lovers."
His voice echoed through the tablet speakers.
"Welcome to the final test. You either choose which one of you dies… or I blow them all up. Simple math. One or many. Love or lives."
Arpan's fists clenched. "You son of a—"
"Ah ah ah," Rivan interrupted with a smirk. "No gangster threats today, Ghost Boy. This isn't your turf anymore."
Samruddhi stepped forward. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because love isn't real. And you proved it, didn't you? When you hesitated."
Her voice cracked. "I never meant to hurt him."
"But you did." His smile widened. "And now he'll never know if you're telling the truth."
The screen glitched again.
Another message appeared:
CHOOSE WHO DIES.YOU HAVE 10 MINUTES.
Underneath it, two buttons appeared.
[AR] Arpan[SS] Samruddhi
Arpan turned to her, jaw clenched. "We're not playing his game."
Samruddhi's hands trembled. "Arpan—what if he's not bluffing?"
"He is."
"You don't know that!"
"I do," Arpan growled. "Because Rivan doesn't want to kill them. He wants to kill us. Slowly. From the inside."
Her eyes welled up. "Then what do we do?"
He paced the room, adrenaline crashing through his veins. "We need to trace the signal. The stream is live—we can track it, maybe disrupt it."
Samruddhi opened a nearby toolbox, fumbling through wires, old tablets, USB drives. "This? Can we use this?"
Arpan grabbed it, scanning quickly. "Maybe. But it'll take time."
00:08:45
Samruddhi looked at the tablet again.
The buttons.
The red glow around Arpan's name now pulsing—like a heartbeat.
Like a target.
She felt it in her chest.
The question burning a hole inside her:
If I save him… and everyone else dies… can I live with that?
If I sacrifice myself… would he even forgive me?
She didn't notice the small light blinking on the corner of the ceiling.
But Arpan did.
"Samru—get down!"
Too late.
Gas flooded the room.
White mist.
Instant disorientation.
Samruddhi coughed, fell to her knees. "Arpan—!"
He rushed toward her, lifting his shirt to her nose. "Breathe through this. Stay awake—come on, stay with me!"
Her body felt numb. Fingers slipped from the tablet. Her vision swam.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered.
"Don't you say goodbye," he said, voice shaking. "Not like this."
Her eyelids fluttered.
Then everything went black.
Moments Later...
Arpan woke up alone.
The gas had cleared.
The tablet was gone.
So was Samruddhi.
In her place—
A red countdown projected onto the wall.
00:03:00
And under it…
A new message:
"The only way to save her is to choose yourself."—Rivan
Arpan stood, stumbling, chest heaving.
He screamed, fists pounding the wall.
"RIVAN! YOU WANT ME?! TAKE ME!"
But only silence answered.
And then—
A second screen lit up on the wall.
Live footage.
Samruddhi.
Bound. Eyes open. Blood on her temple. In a chair wired with explosives.
A timer ticking above her head.
Arpan fell to his knees, the tablet clutched in his shaking hands.
Two buttons blinked again.
[CHOOSE]
[AR] Arpan[SS] Samruddhi
00:01:10
He whispered her name like a prayer.
The camera zoomed in.
Samruddhi mouthed something.
He read her lips.
"Press my name."
His vision blurred.
"No," he breathed.
"It's okay," her lips said.
"I love you."
His finger hovered.
Trembled.
00:00:22
To Be Continued…