The harsh morning light filtering through the curtains did little to soothe the knot of unease in my stomach. Last night's movie marathon, the raw explicitness of it all, had left me feeling strangely exposed, my mind a chaotic swirl of images and emotions. Rhea's knowing glances and her conspiratorial whispers had only added to the growing sense of unease. I had confessed my crush on Parth, and her reaction – that triumphant, almost predatory grin – had felt like a premonition of something yet to come.

As I stirred from a fitful sleep, I heard it – Rhea's voice, sharp and laced with an anger I had never heard directed at me before. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Payal?" she shrieked, her voice echoing through the otherwise silent house. "Are you completely out of your mind?"