CHAPTER 3 — THE FEELING OF BEING WATCHED
780 Words
Navi Mumbai — Three Days Later
Grief was strange.
Divya hadn’t expected to feel it.
She told herself she had already mourned that relationship when it ended. Told herself she had already cried enough. But when someone you once loved dies suddenly… the heart doesn’t ask logic for permission.
It just hurts in a different way.
She stood on her apartment balcony, early morning breeze brushing against her face, her hair tied in a loose braid over one shoulder. The city below was waking up — milk vendors, honking autos, life moving on like nothing had changed.
But something had changed.
She felt it.
A quiet unease.
Like the world had shifted slightly off its axis.
Her phone buzzed in her hand. Another message about Anirudh. More shock. More “I can’t believe it.” More reminders of a boy who used to hold her hand while crossing the street.
She closed her eyes.
“I hope you’re at peace,” she whispered softly.
A tear slid down her cheek.
And somewhere far away…
A man watched that tear fall through a screen.
Moscow — Private Security Floor, Morozov Headquarters
Rurik Morozov did not usually keep cameras on civilians.
But Divya Gupta had become an exception.
Multiple screens glowed in the dimly lit room — city streets, building entrances, traffic feeds. One smaller screen showed the entrance of her apartment complex. Another followed her daily bus route.
He didn’t stare constantly.
He just… checked.
Ensured she was safe.
Ensured no one else made her cry again.
His right-hand man, Mikhail, stood a few feet behind him, hands clasped.
“You’re distracted,” Mikhail said carefully.
Rurik didn’t look away from the screen.
“Am I?”
“You’ve watched the same building entrance for seven minutes.”
Silence.
Then, calmly, “Increase security detail on the port shipment instead of asking unnecessary questions.”
Mikhail nodded. “Yes, boss.”
But as he turned away, his eyes flicked briefly toward the screen — toward the image of a girl adjusting her dupatta before leaving home.
Understanding dawned.
And with it, concern.
Because when Rurik Morozov started caring about someone…
The world around that person usually caught fire.
Mumbai — College Campus
Divya walked through the gates with her friends, trying to act normal.
“Are you okay?” Aisha asked gently.
Divya forced a small smile. “Yeah. Just… weird feelings.”
She didn’t mention the real reason.
The strange sensation that had followed her since the accident.
Like eyes on her back.
Not creepy.
Not threatening.
Just… present.
Twice that morning she had turned suddenly, certain someone had called her name.
Both times, no one was there.
“Maybe I just need sleep,” she murmured to herself.
But when she reached her classroom window and glanced outside—
She froze.
Across the street, a black car sat parked.
Engine off.
Windows tinted.
It could have been anyone.
Probably was.
Still…
Her heartbeat quickened.
And for the first time since the breakup, the sadness in her chest was joined by something new.
Something sharper.
Anticipation.
Moscow — Later That Night
Rurik stood on the balcony of his high-rise residence, snow falling softly around him, city lights glittering below.
His phone buzzed with an update from India.
“Subject reached home safely. No incidents.”
He typed one word back.
“Good.”
He slipped the phone into his pocket, exhaling slowly into the cold night air.
He didn’t know why he felt calmer reading those messages.
Didn’t know why a girl thousands of kilometers away occupied space in his thoughts when entire criminal empires demanded his attention.
But he did know one thing.
He wasn’t finished with India yet.
And fate…
Fate had a habit of dragging him exactly where he needed to be.
Navi Mumbai — Divya’s Room
Divya lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.
Sleep wouldn’t come.
Her mind replayed memories, questions, fears she couldn’t explain.
Just as her eyes began to close, her phone lit up on the bedside table.
Unknown Number
Her heart skipped.
She hesitated… then answered softly.
“Hello?”
Silence.
Only faint breathing on the other end.
“Hello? Who is this?”
The call disconnected.
She stared at the screen, pulse racing.
A chill ran down her spine.
She didn’t know that thousands of miles away, in a dark Moscow office, Rurik was also staring at a phone.
Not because he had called.
But because someone else had.
And that…
Was not part of his plan.
His expression hardened.
Someone else was watching her.
And that meant only one thing.
Someone else was about to make a very serious mistake.
- Writer
