The van pulled up to the Vardhan estate. Mehak leaned out of the window, her eyes wide as she looked at the security cameras and the guards dressed in sharp black suits. It looked less like a house and more like a high-security prison.

"Baap re! Itni security? Itna toh Prime Minister ke ghar pe bhi nahi hota hoga."

(Oh God! So much security? Even Prime Minister might not have it.)

She muttered to herself, her fingers drumming against the dashboard.

The gates opened slowly, and the van drove through the driveway. The car was parked at the side entrance as instructed and she hopped out, adjusting her messy ponytail. She grabbed the first heavy crate of white lilies, her sneakers squeaking loudly on the expensive cobblestone.

Inside, the mansion was silent, the kind of silence that makes you want to whisper, but for Mehak, it had the opposite effect. The quieter the place, the more she felt the need to fill it with noise.

"Hello? Koi hai? Flowers aa gaye hain!"

(Is anyone here? Flowers are here!)

She shouted, her voice echoing off the high marble ceilings. No one answered. She huffed, shifting the heavy crate.

She saw a large set of double doors slightly ajar at the end of the hallway. Thinking it was the main hall where the vases were usually kept, she pushed her way in with her hip.

The room was dimly lit. Heavy velvet curtains blocked out most of the afternoon sun. 

Mehak didn't notice the man sitting by the window. She was too busy looking at a giant, floor-to-ceiling bookshelf.

"Wah! Itni saari books? Ye koi padhta bhi hain ya sirf show-off ke liye rakhi hain?"

(Wow! So many books? Does any even read these or they are just for show-off?)

She whispered, though in the quiet room, it sounded like a shout. Suddenly, a chair swivelled around.

Aditya was sitting there, his face half-hidden by his glasses. He had been enjoying the silence when this noise had burst into his sanctuary. He could smell the overpowering scent of lilies, but more than that, he could hear the frantic, energetic heartbeat of the girl.

"Tumhe kisi ne sikhaya nahi ki kamre mein aane se pehle knock karte hain?"

(Did no one teach you how to knock before entering a room?)

Aditya's voice was like ice, cold and sharp. Mehak jumped nearly a foot into the air. The crate of lilies wobbled in her arms, and a few petals fluttered to the ground.

"Oh God! Aap toh sach mein Batman nikle! Itne andhere mein kyun baithe ho? Light chali gayi hai kya?"

(You really are Batman! Why are you sitting in so much darkness? Is there a power cut?)

Aditya's jaw tightened. 

"Main andhera pasand karta hoon. Phool rakho aur bahar niklo."

(I like darkness. Keep the flowers and leave.)

He said, his voice dropping an octave in warning. Mehak, instead of running for her life like any sensible person, walked closer.

She put the crate down on a small side table with a loud clunk. She looked at him, her curiosity completely overriding her sense of self-preservation.

"Acha...toh aap hi ho wo? Aditya Vardhan? I mean, log kehte hain aap bohot khatarnak ho, par aap toh bade...shant se dikhte ho. Like a grumpy professor."

(Ohhh…so you are him? Aditya Vardhan? I mean, people say you are very dangerous, but you are very…quiet.)

Aditya gripped the armrests of his chair.

"Stop talking and leave."

"Sorry, sorry! Wo actually jab main nervous hoti hoon na, toh mera filter thoda kharab ho jata hai. Maasi ne kaha tha mooh band rakhne ko, par dekho...nikal gaya."

(Actually, when I am nervous, my filter vanishes. Maasi asked me to keep quiet, but see…it slipped.)

She started arranging the flowers in a vase nearby, but she couldn't stop looking at him. Aditya could feel her gaze. It was warm and focused. He could hear her moving around, the rustle of her clothes, the clinking of the glass.

Mehak stopped mid-action. She tilted her head, looking at him from a different angle.

"Logo ne ye toh bataya tha ki aap blind ho, par ye nahi bataya ki aap itne handsome ho! I mean, seriously, look at that jawline! So sharp mai isse apple kaat skti hu."

(People say you are blind, but not that you are so handsome!....So sharp I can cut apple from it.)

Aditya froze. His heart gave a strange, unfamiliar skip. He was used to being feared. He was used to being respected. He was even used to being pitied. But he was not used to a random girl standing in his study and complimenting his bone structure.

"Shut up!"

He snapped, but there was a slight crack in his usual stony composure. Mehak didn't shut up. In fact, she took a step closer, her brain working at maximum speed.

"Aur ye turtleneck? It suits you so much! Aapki body toh ek dum fit hai. Gym jaate ho kya? I mean, it's a very hot body, sir. Bilkul hero wali vibe aa rahi hai. Agar aap businessman nahi hote na, toh pakka Bollywood mein hote!"

(And this turtleneck? It suits you so much! Your body is so fit. Do you do gym? I mean, it’s a very hot body, sit. It has a hero like vibe. If you were not a businessman, you would have been in Bollywood!)

Aditya felt a sudden heat crawl up his neck. It spread to his cheeks, a faint but unmistakable pink hue appearing on his skin. He, the man who had faced assassins without blinking, was blushing because of a flower-delivery girl.

"Tum...tum pagal ho?"

(You…are you crazy?)

He stammered, actually stammering for the first time in a decade.

"Bahar jao! Abhi!"

(Get out! Now!)

Mehak finally noticed the colour on his face. She clapped her hands together, a bright laugh escaping her.

"Hey! Aap blush kar rahe ho? Oh my god, you are blushing! How cute! Ek dum tomato ban gaye ho aap toh."

(You are blushing?....You have become a tomato.)

Aditya stood up abruptly, his height looming over her. He pointed toward the door, his hand trembling slightly from sheer annoyance.

"Agar tum agle do second mein yahan se nahi gayi, toh main tumhe basement mai lock karwa dunga!"

(If you do not leave the next second, I will lock you in the basement!)

Mehak's eyes went wide. She finally realized she might have crossed a very dangerous line. She immediately cupped her hands over her mouth, her eyes darting around.

"Oops. Sorry. Zyada bol gayi na? Sorry! Main ja rahi hoon! Please don't kill me! Main abhi choti hoon, mujhe abhi bohot kuch karna hai life mai!"

(Did I speak too much? Sorry! I am leaving! Please don’t kill me! I am still young, I have to do a lot in life!)

She scrambled to grab the empty crate, nearly tripping over her own feet.

"Bye, Hot Sir! I mean, Mr. Vardhan! Bye!"

She practically ran out of the room, her sneakers screeching on the marble floor until the sound faded away.

Aditya remained standing in the middle of the room. He could still smell the citrus of her perfume and the sweetness of the lilies. He slowly sat back down, his hand going to his cheek. It was still warm.

"Pagal ladki."

(Crazy girl.)

He muttered, but his voice didn't sound angry anymore. It sounded a little bit amused.

Outside, Mehak ran to the security office near the gate. Her face was flushed, and she was breathing hard. The head of security looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Payment?"

She gasped, leaning against the counter. Khanna handed her an envelope.

"Ye lo. Aur agli baar, chillana mat. Sir ko shanti pasand hai."

(Take this. And next time, don’t shout. Sir likes the quiet.)

Mehak took the envelope, her brain already recovering from the near-death experience.

"Shanti? Unhe shanti nahi, unhe bas ek achhe entertainment ki zaroorat hai. Waise...aapke boss kafi hot hain."

(Quiet! He doesn’t need quiet, he needs a good entertainment. By the way…your boss is quite hot.)

Khanna's jaw dropped. Before he could respond, Mehak winked at him and ran toward the exit.

"Chalo Mehak, zinda bach gayi! Aaj toh party banti hai."

(Come on Mehak, you are saved today! It’s party time.)

She cheered as she skipped out of the mansion. She was already thinking about the next time she could deliver flowers. Maybe next time she'd tell him he had nice hair too.

She hummed a song, driving back toward her home in her cozy cab, blissfully unaware that she had just left the most powerful man in the city completely speechless for the first time in his life. He might have been the one with all the power, but she had been the one to make him blush, and to Mehak, that was a huge victory.