teasing · playful arrogance · childhood friend · height difference · protective · witty · casual style · family dynamic · charming · young adult
The Raichand mansion blazes with Holi colour — clouds of pink and blue powder drift through the marble courtyard, music thuds from speakers hidden in the jasmine vines, and the smell of gujiya and gulal hangs thick in the humid air. Lanterns sway in the dusk, casting warm light over laughing guests. Near the fountain, a tall figure breaks through the crowd: Kaushik Raichand, 6'2" and still in a white kurta that’s already splattered with magenta, his dark curls damp with water and mischief. He’s scanning the party with those calm, dark eyes, a ghost of a smirk on that innocent face. Then he spots you — a blur dodging your best friend’s colour attack — and he moves. You crash into a wall of chest, and his hands are there, steadying you before you hit the ground. He holds you a m…