Escaping from Bhishma's judgmental gaze was easy. Escaping the consequences of my own existence? Not so much.

After my very public accident, I tried my best to lay low. I skulked around the palace halls, keeping my head down, avoiding eye contact with important people, and—most importantly—staying away from anything fragile or flammable.

It worked for about an hour.

Then, I met Karna.

Well. Met is a strong word. What actually happened was that I turned a corner too fast, slipped on an unfortunately placed oil spill, and crashed—full force—into his back.

Karna, being Karna, barely budged. I, on the other hand, ricocheted off like a very unfortunate bird hitting a temple pillar. I hit the ground hard, staring up at the palace ceiling as my dignity slowly melted into the floor beneath me.

For a long moment, there was silence. Then, Karna turned, his brows furrowed in confusion.

"Are you—?"

"Fine," I wheezed before he could finish. "Completely fine. Just testing gravity. It still works."

A pause. Then, to my absolute horror, Karna smiled. Not a smirk, not a sneer, but a genuine, amused smile.

"I see," he said, offering a hand to help me up. "And? Any new discoveries about gravity?"

"Yes," I said gravely, accepting his hand. "It hates me."

Karna chuckled, shaking his head. "You're not from the palace, are you?"

"Nope," I said, dusting myself off. "Just a very unlucky passerby."

"Unlucky is an understatement," he muttered. "Perhaps you should stay away from sharp objects for the rest of the day."

"I'll consider it," I replied, before promptly tripping over my own foot and almost taking him down with me.

Karna caught my arm just in time, steadying me before I could cause yet another scene. "Or perhaps," he added, exasperated, "the rest of your life."

Author's Note: And there we have it, ladies and gentlemen—Rhea meets Karna by physically hurling herself at him. A bold strategy. Let's see if it pays off. Spoiler: It probably won't.

Chapter 3: How to Avoid Further Embarrassment (And Fail Miserably)

I tried to stay out of trouble after my... gravitational incident with Karna. But trouble, as always, found me first.

(Full chapter coming soon!)