Chapter 32
After I dropped Maya home, she gave me one last blinding smile and kissed the puppy on his tiny forehead like it was the most natural thing in the world. I swear, her eyes sparkled like a freaking galaxy when she waved at me before disappearing inside.
And now here I was...
Standing in my living room... staring at a fluff ball wagging his tail like he owned the place.
"This... is your fault," I muttered, placing the puppy gently on the couch.
He just blinked up at me, tilted his head, then barked-once-as if agreeing.
"You're already a menace."
The puppy barked again. Loudly.
Yeah. Definitely a Maya-level menace.
I sat down, ruffling my hair. I wasn't sure what shocked me more-bringing a damn puppy home or how fast I gave in the moment she looked at me like that.
I stared at the tiny thing. "You need a name."
He wagged his tail again.
"Trouble?" I smirked. "Chaos? Disaster?" The pup barked. "No? Fine..."
I leaned forward, eyes narrowing.
"Okay... You look like a... Simba. Small, dramatic, impossible. Perfect."
Bark.
Yup. He approved. Of course, he did. Maya would be proud.
Just then, I heard the front door unlock. Veer walked in, holding a can of soda, phone in his other hand. "Bhai, guess what-"
He stopped mid-step. Froze. And stared.
At me.
At Simba.
Then back at me.
"What the hell is that?" he asked, eyes wide.
"A dog," I said nonchalantly, grabbing Simba and placing him on my lap like he was some royal prince.
Veer blinked. "You brought a dog home?" He stepped closer like he was seeing a UFO. "YOU? Rudra 'No Pets In My House' Singhania?"
I leaned back smugly. "Things change."
"Is it possessed? Is this one of those haunted demon puppies from those horror movies you watch-?"
"It's just a puppy, Veer."
"Yeah, and you're just a professor," Veer deadpanned. "Wait-" He narrowed his eyes. "Is this because of her?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Who?"
"Don't play dumb, Bhai. Maya."
I smirked, rubbing Simba's head. "You think I'd bring a dog home for a student?"
I lied
Veer dropped onto the couch, staring at me like he was watching an alien hatch from an egg.
"You're whipped," he muttered. "God, this is worse than I thought."
I ignored him as Simba happily nuzzled against me. "We named him Simba."
"We?!" Veer gaped.
I gave him a pointed look. "You're not wrong though... I might be a little whipped."
He snorted. "A little? Bhai, you brought home an animal because a girl gave you puppy eyes. Do you even hear yourself?"
I shrugged, grinning despite myself.
Because the truth was...
I didn't care if Veer teased me. I didn't care that there was now a literal puppy living in my house.
Because for the first time in years...
I didn't feel alone.
And somehow... it all started with a girl who hated Maths and a puppy named Simba.
And I wouldn't change a single thing.
I woke up with something warm nudging my side.
Groggy, I blinked open one eye-only to find Simba's fuzzy face barely inches from mine, tongue hanging out and tail thumping against the mattress.
"Seriously?" I muttered.
Wag. Wag.
This tiny devil somehow made it from the floor to my bed. Again. For the third night in a row.
"You're turning into a spoiled brat," I told him.
He barked softly, then yawned in my face like he owned the damn world.
God. Maya's influence was everywhere. I swear she trained him telepathically.
Still, I couldn't help the tiny smile pulling at my lips as I ruffled Simba's head.
"Alright, come on. Time to adult."
I rolled out of bed, dragged myself to the shower, got dressed in my usual black shirt and trousers-my signature "Professor Khadoos" look-and headed to uni, leaving Simba in Veer's confused and slightly terrified care.
I walked into the lecture hall, the sound of my formal shoes echoing against the marble floor. The students instantly straightened in their seats.
Good. Fear was still intact.
My eyes scanned the room, automatically finding her.
Maya Raichand. Middle row. Sitting like the world's biggest innocent-but I knew better. She was trouble wrapped in soft laughter and jasmine shampoo. Her half-tied hair fell over her shoulder, and she looked up with wide eyes-pretending to be all academic and clueless.
I almost smirked.
Almost.
But I slipped right back into my Professor Mode.
"Settle down," I said sharply, dropping my bag on the table with a controlled thud.
A collective gulp echoed.
I grabbed the chalk and turned to the board, scrawling today's topic in my clean, sharp handwriting.
"Complex Numbers: Argument and Modulus."
Behind me, there was instant groaning.
I didn't care. I lived for this.
"Those who fail to solve today's set will stay back after class," I said calmly, facing them again. "And no, I'm not joking."
I paused. My gaze landed on Maya again.
She narrowed her eyes slightly, clearly biting back a smile.
Oh, don't test me right now, little furball.
I raised a brow, just the tiniest flick upward.
She looked away. Fast. Cheeks pink.
Perfect.
"Page 213. Let's begin," I said, walking down the aisle with my usual cold gaze.
Inside?
I was replaying last night's coffee date. Her eyes. Her laugh. The way she'd leaned close to fix the whipped cream on my nose and pressed the softest kiss to my cheek when no one was watching.
But here?
I was Rudra Singhania. Cold. Ruthless. Untouchable.
And no one had to know that I now shared my bed with a 3-month-old puppy... or that I was stupidly in love with the chaos sitting three rows in front of me.
The class was silent except for the scribbling of pens and the occasional deep sigh from a student trying to survive the tyranny of complex numbers.
I paced slowly, hands folded behind my back, eyes sharp.
"Raunak," I barked, causing him to jump. "What's the modulus of this number?"
He stuttered through an answer I didn't care to listen to, because my eyes had already wandered back to the girl sitting at the corner desk... biting her pen with mock concentration.
My little furball.
She looked up at me, eyes wide like she had no idea what was going on-textbook open, pencil doodling on the margins, a faint smirk on her lips.
And then-her phone buzzed.
Hidden between the pages of her book.
My brows furrowed.
I walked over to her desk slowly. She stiffened.
Without breaking eye contact, I bent down slightly and whispered just loud enough for her to hear, "Is this class boring you, Miss Raichand?"
Her throat moved as she swallowed. "N-No, Sir."
I straightened up and smirked to myself as I walked back. I didn't even have to check. I knew she had texted me.
And sure enough-my phone buzzed inside my coat pocket.
I waited a few seconds before sliding it out, shielding it with my hand.
Little furball: Your "Professor Mode" is so hot it's unfair. I think I forgot what modulus means.
Also... Simba says hi.
I coughed to cover up the laugh that almost escaped me.
God, this girl.
I typed back quickly, keeping my expression flat.
Me : Focus on the lesson or I'll keep you back for extra classes. With punishment.
And Simba's grounded. For distracting you.
A second later, I saw her stiffen again.
She read the message, lips twitching into a grin as she pretended to nod along with the explanation on the board.
And then... she did it.
She pulled her pen up to her lips and bit the cap, staring right at me from under her lashes.
My throat went dry.
This girl was trying to kill me.
I looked away, jaw tight. "Enough. Quiz time."
Collective groans echoed again.
"15 minutes. No talking," I said, tossing question papers on the desks.
I needed a distraction. A serious one. Because if Maya Raichand kept looking at me like that, I was going to forget I was a professor altogether.
But even as I tried to act all cold and untouchable-
The truth was?
I was already hers.
Completely.
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