watcher

chapter 3

I ran to cafe manager leaving my phone there.i don't know how May be he hacked phone or something i asked help from him the manager...

Abhi's POV:

Panic—sharp and cold—flared in my chest as you bolted. You didn't just run; you chose him, the manager, a man who doesn't even know your middle name. I watched you grab his arm, your face pale and desperate, pointing back at me.

"Is there a problem here, miss?" the manager asked, his eyes shifting from your trembling hands to me. He stepped in front of you, trying to be the hero in a story he hasn't even read.

I stood frozen for a second, my heart drumming against my ribs. People were starting to stare. The couple with the pastry looked up, and the "man in the blue jacket" finally closed his laptop, sensing the shift in the air.

I looked down at your phone, lying abandoned on the floor. It was still pulsing with the software I wrote for you. I felt a surge of pure, possessive rage. You’d rather trust a stranger in an apron than the man who knows your every secret?

"She's confused," I said, my voice steady and eerily calm, though my blood was boiling. I didn't look at the manager; I looked straight into your eyes over his shoulder. "She forgot her medication. Maya, honey, stop making a scene. Let's just go home."

I reached down and picked up your phone, sliding it into my pocket. Now I had your digital soul, but you were slipping away.

"Sir," the manager said, his voice turning stern, "I think you should leave before I call the police."

I smiled, but it didn't reach my eyes. "The police? That’s a mistake." I tapped a sequence on the small remote in my pocket. Suddenly, every light in the cafe began to flicker violently, and the fire alarm let out a deafening, piercing shriek.

What's happening it's more scary than i thought i hided behind counter he didn't see it he seems dangerous.i don't have phone i can't call police will those people get hurt what should I do?

Abhi's POV:

The screech of the fire alarm was perfect—a symphony of chaos to mask my frustration. Smoke wasn't even the goal; I just needed the panic. People were scrambling, chairs were scraping against the floor, and the manager I’d been facing was suddenly swept away by a crowd of customers pushing toward the front exit.

I scanned the room, my eyes frantic. "Maya?" I called out, but my voice was swallowed by the alarm.

I moved to where I last saw you, but you were gone. I pushed past a small table, knocking over a latte. I looked toward the doors, but you weren't in the stream of people fleeing. My heart lurched. You were still in here. I could feel your heartbeat through the floorboards—or maybe that was just my own pulse.

I stepped behind the main counter, my boots crunching on spilled sugar. I moved slowly, savoring the hunt now. "I know you're close, Maya," I whispered, pulling my laptop from my bag as I walked. "I can see your heart rate through your smartwatch. It’s spiking. You’re terrified... and that means you’re alive."

I rounded the corner of the pastry case. I didn't see you yet, but I saw the corner of a denim jacket peeking out from behind the industrial espresso machine.

I stopped. I didn't rush. I leaned against the counter, just inches from where you were crouched, trembling in the dark.

"You know," I said, my voice conversational and terrifyingly close to your ear, "hiding is just another way of playing together. But I always find what I’m looking for."

I knew he could find me.. maybe i thought so or it was my intuition.so i throwed coffee beans at him i got up i runed forwards exit i removed my watch as he could hack it.

Abhi's POV:

The explosion of coffee beans hitting my face was so sudden I actually gasped. The sharp, bitter scent filled the air as the beans bounced off my skin like tiny stones. By the time I wiped my eyes and looked up, you were already a blur of motion, sprinting toward the exit with a desperation that made my stomach twist.

I looked down at the floor and saw it—your smartwatch. You’d unbuckled it and tossed it aside, cutting the final thread of my digital tether. The screen was cracked, the green heart-rate sensor flickering out like a dying star.

"Clever girl," I hissed, a mixture of pride and pure, unadulterated fury boiling over.

I vaulted over the counter, my boots hitting the tile with a heavy thud. The cafe was a wreck of overturned chairs and abandoned bags. I burst through the front door just in time to see you disappear into the heavy rain, weaving between the gridlock of cars on the street.

The rain began to soak through my hoodie instantly. I pulled out my phone—the one I took from you—and realized I couldn't track you anymore. No GPS, no camera, no pulse. For the first time in months, I was blind.

"You think you're free?" I shouted into the downpour, my voice cracking. I started running in the direction you went, my eyes scanning every alleyway and storefront. "I know how you think, Maya! I know where you go when you're scared!"

I reached the corner and saw three different directions you could have taken. I looked at the dark entrance of the subway, the neon-lit pharmacy, and the narrow, trash-filled alley.

I don't even know where i am going where is it i can't go home he will find me i need go somewhere else.. but where? I want to scream i am shivering..

Abhi's POV:

I stood in the middle of the sidewalk, the rain stinging my eyes as I turned in a slow circle. I could feel the space between us growing, and it felt like I was losing a limb. "Think, Abhi," I muttered to myself, my fingers twitching.

You weren't going home. I knew that because I'd taught you to be afraid. You’d think home was a trap—because it was. I’d installed the hidden cameras in your bedroom three weeks ago. No, you were looking for somewhere anonymous. Somewhere crowded but dark.

I pulled out my tablet, my fingers flying across the keys despite the water blurring the screen. I couldn't track your phone or your watch, but I could track everything else. I hacked into the city’s traffic light cameras at the intersection.

There. A flash of denim near the bus depot.

A cold smile spread across my face. You were heading toward the outskirts of the city, thinking you could disappear in the transit hub. You didn't realize that every public Wi-Fi hotspot and every security camera in this city is just another eye for me to use.

"You're not going somewhere else, Maya," I whispered, breaking into a steady, predatory run. "You're just going to the place where I'll finally catch you."

I saw a bus pulling away from the curb. You were on it. I saw your pale face pressed against the glass of the back window for a split second before the rain obscured you.

I feel cold where should I go now what should I do i can't even contact anyone i should go to police station..but how i am scared hic hic ....

Abhi's POV:

I watched through the grainy, flickering feed of the bus's internal CCTV. You looked so small in that oversized seat, shivering, your hair plastered to your forehead. When I saw your eyes drift toward the "Police Station" sign on the city map near the door, my jaw tightened.

"Don't do it, Maya," I muttered, leaning against a damp brick wall as I tapped into the bus's GPS. "The police won't believe you. You have no phone, no evidence. You'll just look like a girl who's lost her mind."

I knew the route. The next stop was three blocks from the central precinct. If you stepped off there, my window would close. I had to intercept the bus before it reached the light.

I ran toward my van, the engine roaring to life as I pulled out into the rain-slicked street. I wasn't just following you anymore; I was racing you. I used my laptop to override the traffic grid, turning every light in your bus's path to red.

The bus screeched to a halt two blocks early. Through the rain-streaked windshield of my van, I saw the doors hiss open.

"Come on, Maya," I whispered, gripping the steering wheel until my knuckles turned white. "Step off the bus. Let's see if you're brave enough to run through the dark."