• English - Romance

    The Unseen Hour

    Rohan A. Desai Part One – The Arrival The city was still damp from the evening rain when Maya stepped out of the cab. The streets glistened with neon reflections, every puddle a trembling mirror that caught fragments of shop lights, passing headlights, and the restless pulse of Friday night. She adjusted the strap of her bag and drew her coat closer around her body, though the air wasn’t cold so much as alive with moisture. She could feel it clinging to her skin, making her aware of herself in a way that was both uncomfortable and strangely awakening. The…

  • English - Romance

    Velvet Nights

    Serene Kapoor Part 1 — The Invitation The city was still shimmering with the restless energy of twilight when Maya closed her laptop. The amber glow of streetlights was slipping into her apartment, mingling with the fragrance of sandalwood she had lit earlier. She leaned back in her chair, her body aching from the day, but her mind was alive with something else entirely—a message that had arrived just hours ago. The envelope had been thick, the kind that demanded attention. Inside was a cream-colored card embossed with an unfamiliar crest, edges gilded like something from another century. The handwriting—sleek,…

  • English - Romance

    Brushstrokes of Her Shadow

    Nayantara Das The House on the Ridge The first time Leela Varman saw Rudra Kaul’s house, it reminded her of her mother’s eyes—quiet, pale, and full of something that stayed just out of reach. Perched like a ghost on the ridge, the stone cottage didn’t greet visitors. It waited. And as she stepped out of the rickety taxi with her sketchbooks and a single duffel bag, the Kumaon wind wrapped around her as if testing who she had become. She had lied to get here. Well, not lied. Curated. She had submitted her portfolio anonymously to the prestigious Kaul Residency,…

  • English - Romance - Suspense

    Married to My Enemy’s Son

    Sanika Mehra Part 1 – The Truce Dress The first time I saw him, he was standing at the far end of the room like a statue carved out of contempt. Arjun Singh—my husband by decree, my enemy by blood—wore a black silk sherwani that looked like it had been stitched out of shadows. His eyes didn’t flicker when I walked in, dressed in bridal red and drenched in humiliation. He didn’t reach out, didn’t smile, didn’t nod. Just watched. As if he was trying to remember who I reminded him of. Maybe a girl in a firing range. Maybe…

  • English - Romance

    Screenshoted Heart

    Aisha Verma Part 1 The first time Neil saw Siya, she was hurling a half-eaten vada pav at a man twice her size in front of Andheri Station. It hit the man square in the chest, splattering red chutney like a bloodstain on his white shirt. A crowd had gathered, of course. Cameras were out. Someone was live-streaming. Neil had been passing by, DSLR in hand, mind elsewhere, when the chaos sucked him in like Mumbai traffic at peak hour. “Don’t touch me!” Siya yelled, her voice sharp as a glass shard. The man, red-faced, lunged at her, but Neil…

  • English - Romance - Young Adult

    Bleeding Blue

    Ayesha Rao Part 1: The First Dive The pool was colder than she had expected. Zoya Narang stood at the edge, staring into the shimmering blue, her toes curled against the tile. The whistle had already blown. Others had dived. But she hesitated. Not because she didn’t know how to swim—Zoya could glide like a whisper—but because this was the national camp, and those lanes held sharks in Speedos. A drop of water slid from her temple to her lips. Chlorine. Fear. And something more. “Jump, wild card.” The voice came from behind her—low, amused, and irritatingly familiar. Zoya didn’t…

  • English - Horror

    The Honeymoon Lodge

    Arif Khan Arrival at the Lodge The winding road snaked through the mist-cloaked forests of Simla, flanked by towering deodar trees whose branches interlocked like conspirators. The hired taxi, an old white Ambassador with rusted edges and a rattling engine, coughed its way up the slope. Rhea looked out of the foggy window, her breath forming tiny clouds on the cold glass. Her fingers tightened around Aarav’s hand. “This feels like a scene from an old horror movie,” she murmured with a nervous chuckle. Aarav grinned. “Romantic horror, maybe. Like Honeymoon in Hell.” “Not funny,” Rhea said, swatting his arm.…