Morning Comes With Pain

Avni groaned as she tried to sit up. Every muscle in her body ached from last night’s punishment.

"Boot camp with the dictator," she muttered under her breath, rubbing her sore legs. "Great. Just great."

Before she could even consider going back to sleep, her door swung open.

Arnav stood there, dressed in his usual crisp black shirt and pants, arms crossed.

"Up." His tone left no room for argument.

Avni buried her face in her pillow. "Five more minutes."

Arnav walked in. "You’ve already wasted five minutes. Move."

She groaned loudly but swung her legs over the bed.

"I hate you," she mumbled.

Arnav smirked. "Good. That means the training is working."

She glared at him. "Training? You made me do sit-ups until my legs gave up!"

"That was just a warm-up," he said casually. "Now, get dressed and meet me outside."

Avni blinked. "Outside? It’s 6 AM!"

"Exactly."

She stared at him in horror. "You’re insane."

He smirked. "And you’re late. Ten minutes. If you take longer, I’ll double today’s training."

Avni rushed to get ready.

Training Begins

The Oberoi mansion had a private garden, large enough to be a small park. But this morning, it felt like a military training ground.

Anirudh stood nearby, sipping his coffee, looking both amused and sympathetic.

Ayush and Aryan sat on the porch, watching like it was live entertainment.

Avni scowled. "What are they doing here?"

"Motivation," Arnav said simply.

Aryan grinned. "Yeah, we’re here for moral support!"

Ayush smirked. "And to watch you suffer."

Avni groaned. "I really hate all of you."

Arnav tossed her a jump rope.

"Start with this. Five minutes."

She caught it, confused. "That’s easy."

Arnav raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Then make it ten."

She cursed under her breath and started jumping.

The first two minutes were fine. By the fifth, her legs burned.

Arnav glanced at his watch. "Nine more minutes."

She nearly tripped. "WHAT?!"

Anirudh chuckled. "You walked into that one."

Aryan whispered to Ayush, "We should start taking bets on how long she lasts."

Ayush smirked. "I say ten more minutes before she collapses."

Avni heard them and shot them a glare. "I’ll survive this just to prove you both wrong!"

She kept jumping.

Arnav’s Lesson

After the jump rope hell, Arnav made her do push-ups.

Then sit-ups.

Then squats.

By the time she was panting on the ground, she was convinced she had died twice and come back.

Arnav crouched beside her. "Tired?"

She glared at him. "No, I’m just lying here for fun."

He smirked. "Good. Because we’re just getting started."

She groaned. "Why are you doing this to me?"

His smirk faded. "Because you need to be stronger, Avni. You can’t just rush into danger and expect to be saved every time. You want to stand with this family? Then be strong enough to stand on your own first."

For once, she had no comeback.

She just looked at him, his expression unreadable, his voice firm but... not unkind.

Maybe, just maybe... he wasn’t being cruel.

Maybe he was teaching her to survive.

Avni swallowed hard.

"Fine," she muttered. "I’ll do it."

Arnav’s lips curled into a small, approving smirk. "Good. Now get up. Training isn’t over yet."

To Be Continued…