[Some beginnings don’t lead to love… they lead to obsession.✨] This story takes you back to where it all started — before the forced marriage, before the obsession, before love turned into something neither of them could control. 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐤 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐡𝐨𝐭𝐫𝐚 A man who doesn’t believe in love and doesn’t need it. Cold, powerful, and dangerously calm, Manik lives in a world where emotions are weakness and control is everything. Women mean nothing to him — just temporary distractions he never allows close. °"You were never supposed to matter… but now I can’t seem to ignore you."° 𝐍𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐢 𝐒. Free-spirited, unpredictable, and full of life, Nandini lives on her own terms. She doesn’t trust men and has no intention of letting anyone control her life. Her dreams are bigger than anything, and love has no place in them. °"I don’t belong to anyone… and I never will."° They were never meant to cross paths. Two completely different worlds, moving in opposite directions — until one moment changes everything. And when they do meet, it doesn’t feel like coincidence. It feels like the beginning of something dangerous… something neither of them understands, yet neither of them can walk away from. This is not where they fell in love. This is where it started — before the obsession, before the chaos, before they slowly began to destroy each other… and themselves.