Chapter 4: Pyaar Ki Classes?

It was a new day in the Oberoi Mansion, but for Anika, it was punishment day. The great Shivay Singh Oberoi had assigned her the task of helping him with his study notes, and frankly, she still couldn’t believe it.

Anika (muttering to herself as she walked into the study room): "Uff! Yeh kaisa insaan hai? Punishment ka matlab hota hai koi mazedaar chiz, jaise ice cream banwana ya dance karwana… yeh toh mujhe aur padhaai karwa raha hai! Mera dimaag toh already dukh raha hai!"

She entered the room to find Shivay already seated, his books neatly stacked, pen in hand, and an expression of pure focus.

Shivay (without looking up): "You’re late."

Anika (rolling her eyes): "Oh sorry, mere paas ek alarm clock toh tum hi ho na!"

Shivay shot her a glare but chose to ignore her sarcasm.

Shivay: "Let’s get started. Read these notes and summarize them for me."

Anika groaned and sat down across from him, picking up a book dramatically.

Anika: "Uff, yeh toh pura Ramayan lag raha hai!"

Shivay smirked slightly.

Shivay: "Haan, tumhare liye toh simple sa ek paragraph bhi pura epic lagta hai."

Anika (fake smiling): "Haha, bohot mazak kar lete ho tum, nerd Oberoi!"

Ignoring her, Shivay got back to work, and after a few minutes, Anika actually started focusing. Surprisingly, she found herself getting into it, and Shivay was—well, a decent teacher. He didn’t scold her too much (which was a miracle in itself).

But as she started reading aloud, she suddenly yawned.

Anika: "Shivay, yeh subject itna boring kyun hai?"

Shivay: "Tumhari concentration ka problem hai, subject ka nahi."

Anika: "Acha? Toh tum prove karo ki yeh subject interesting hai!"

Shivay smirked, shutting his book.

Shivay: "Fine. Tumhe jo pasand hai usse relate kar ke samjhata hoon."

Anika (curious): "Acha? Challenge accept kiya?"

Shivay: "Haan. Tumhe romance pasand hai na?"

Anika blinked in surprise.

Anika: "Hain? Tumhe kaise pata?"

Shivay leaned back in his chair.

Shivay: "Tumhara har dialogue filmy hota hai. Tum literally ek daily soap ki heroine ho."

Anika made a face but couldn't exactly deny it.

Anika: "Toh ab tum mujhe romance se padhai kaise samjhane wale ho?"

Shivay picked up a math problem and held it up.

Shivay: "Okay. Imagine yeh equation ek love story hai."

Anika raised an eyebrow, intrigued.

Shivay: "Yeh ‘X’ aur ‘Y’ ek dusre ke bina adhure hain. Jaise ek perfect couple hota hai, waise hi inka bhi ek perfect solution hota hai. Par inke beech ‘+’, ‘-’, aur ‘=’ jaise problems hote hain jo unhe alag karne ki koshish karte hain."

Anika’s eyes widened in realization.

Anika: "Matlab... numbers ki bhi love story ho sakti hai?"

Shivay smirked.

Shivay: "Agar tumhe dhang se samajhna ho, toh haan."

Anika stared at him for a second before suddenly bursting into laughter.

Anika: "Oh my God! Tum ek nerd ho, lekin ab thoda interesting lag rahe ho!"

Shivay rolled his eyes, but the corner of his lips twitched slightly, betraying his amusement.

Anika (grinning): "Chalo, mujhe ek aur love story sunao, mere pyaare equation guru!"

Shivay shook his head but continued explaining, making learning surprisingly fun for her. It was the first time Anika actually felt like she could understand something academic without losing her mind.

As the study session went on, Shivay realized something strange—he was actually enjoying teaching her. Her excitement was contagious, and her goofy expressions made him chuckle despite himself.

Maybe, just maybe…

Anika wasn’t as impossible as he had thought.

Later That Night – Midnight

Anika lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, lost in thought.

Anika (thinking): "Yeh Shivay toh sahi mein ajeeb hai… kabhi strict teacher, kabhi cute nerd. Kaunsa version asli hai?"

She turned to her side, sighing.

Anika: "Pata nahi. Par ek baat toh sach hai… yeh ladka interesting hai."

Unbeknownst to her, in his own room, Shivay was also staring at the ceiling, frowning.

Shivay (thinking): "Why do I keep thinking about her expressions? Mujhe bas uski studies par dhyaan dena chahiye... bas aur kuch nahi."

But deep down, he knew… something had changed.

And this study challenge?

It was just the beginning.

To Be Continued…