ArHi FF - Aftershock: Chapter 9, Pg 26, 23 September - Page 2

Originally posted by: Sindhuramakrish

simply awesome. A different topic and wonderful and dangerous start.

Thanks...

Originally posted by: punnaanchal

Amazing

Thank you.

Originally posted by: vidya.sanjay

Loved the concept.

The interview part was very interesting.

Eager forthe future updates.

Thanks. Updates will be as regular as possible. hopefully daily :)

Originally posted by: abivicky86

loved it.sounds interesting .a unique concept

Thanks!

Originally posted by: ntmrjn

Ok very out of the box topic..dealing with farming..update soon.

Thank you..

Originally posted by: ifsaal044

Very interesting story line.

Thanks..

Originally posted by: IDatIF

Nice continue soon

Update will be soon-ish

Originally posted by: ducky_anne

You're a good writer! Great start! Somehow I feel like she's planning some sort of revenge on Raizada!

Thanks a lot. Maybe (:

Originally posted by: ILoveFF

Very nice ... Looks like a ploy

(: Can be

Originally posted by: Sanz.

What's Her Mission? Looking Quiet Interesting ; D

Thanks..

Originally posted by: famiya

interesting start

I hope so (:

Originally posted by: crazyqueen

interesting.

plzz PM me.

Thanks... ok..

Chapter 2:

She groans inwardly when the latest arrival on their table gives her a sardonic look. She picks up the glass of wine, sits back in her chair and gives the man sitting across her and next to Arnav, a leering wink. He is startled at her blatant offensiveness but recovers quickly.

It's an informal brunch on a warm Saturday morning marking Khushi's completion of a week at Raizada industries. Arnav is planning on massive expansion in their manufacturing as the government renegotiated trade agreements with several countries with agriculture prominence was well known. Trade missions were where Khushi's expertise came into play so for Arnav, it was a strategic move to employ her. Her presence had given him a route that hadn't existed before and he wasn't shy of using her contacts for the progress of the company. The brunch was a means to talk out of their roles and just hang out as people and talk trash about latest Bollywood cinema and local politicians; just a lazy Saturday, in a way.

"Who is this?" The man pointedly ignores Khushi and asks Arnav.

She can hear Arnav sighing across table thinking how Nathan can sometimes be such a child. She grins, and says, "I am Arnav's favorite po*n star. This is his way of thanking me for getting him through lone teen years."

Arnav looks at the two of them and gives her glare. She asks, "What?"

"You know she is the vice president of operations Nathan. I introduced the two of you on her first day here." He empties his mimosa and beckons waiter for a refill.

Nathan scratches his stubble. "Hmm...I must be distracted that time."

"And then we met in board meeting next day." Khushi supplies, hiding a grin behind her wine glass.

"Not to mention your office is only four doors away from her." Arnav speaks once his glass has been refilled.

Khushi piled on. "Please, let's not forget how we bumped into each other several times this week in elevators, pantry, meeting rooms..." She trails.

"And that we have been running in same circles for more than a decade." Arnav adds.

Nathan shrugged. "I would have remembered if you were really a po*n star material." He grinned lewdly at her. Khushi and Arnav rolled their eyes at the same time.

The table fell silent as their food was being served and a considerable dent was made to the food on their plates.

"Is there a particular reason why I was invited to this meeting?" Nathan asked Arnav, all cockiness dissolved from his voice. Khushi was wondering if this was something he did to all senior level employees when they first joined. Nathan buttered his roll and continued when there was no immediate response. "You don't spend time on things like brunch and shit unless there is an agenda behind it or you are dating someone." He looks up from his plate and looks at Arnav hard. "I know for sure that I am not your type." He ends with a smile that doesn't reach his eyes.

Khushi watches the dynamic between two men who are clearly very close friends but there is something else boiling beneath. Was it competition? Was it betrayal? She couldn't make out. Her research didn't show anything out of the ordinary on Nathan; a gold medalist in math Olympiad had turned to finance than science. Now in his late thirties, he was single, parties hard yet manages to look sober and be his brilliant self, four hours later. He and Arnav met when Arnav was in business school and they had become fast friends. Nathan came to work in Raizada industries almost a decade ago when it was still blooming under a protected umbrella. Their collective wisdom had them made a prime exporter in less than a decade.

"Tell him," Arnav says, locking Khushi's gaze in his.

She nods and takes a long gulp of wine and fixes Nathan in a steady gaze. "My father was Arjun Gupta."

Nathan's blank expression crumbles and it's replaced with shock. "You mean the guy who previously owned this company?" He looks between Khushi and Arnav.

Arnav nods. "It's the first thing she told me when I offered her this job. She wanted a full disclosure so that there would be no conflicts in future."

Nathan schools his expression to go blank again. "There are going to be conflicts in future Arnav. What's the guarantee she isn't here to plow this industry to the ground?" He asks, raising an eyebrow at her.

She smiles delicately and says, "I am not here to take over your company, if that's what you are afraid of. I don't have the patience or energy to do such a thing." She halts and looks at the two of them and sighs internally. "I am not smart enough to pull something like that." She adds, softly.

"Bullshit." Nathan reacts first. Even Arnav is surprised at the snarl that laces his voice. "You have the motive, people, intelligence and enough anger towards Arnav's family."

Khushi narrows her eyes. "Why should I hate Arnav's family? All transactions happened fair and square. We were in debt and Arnav's uncle bought it with fair price."

"Nathan..." Arnav pitches in to make conversation smoother.

"What?" He turns his body around to face Arnav. "You believe this shit?" He asks in disbelief.

"I do, actually." Arnav replies immediately. "I trust her to perform in her role fairly." Nathan looks at Arnav and Khushi is torn between being angry and insulted. Arnav didn't trust her really even after coming clean. If she was in his shoes, maybe she would have done the same or worse. She couldn't blame him, really, for the distance he wanted to put between her and the rest of the company. But doing this in front of her? Not cool.

"You believe that, huh." Nathan turns back to face her but doesn't meet her eyes. Instead, he picks his fork and looks around his plate.

"I do, Nathan." Arnav replies softly.

Nathan shrugs. "I am guessing you are keeping this information all hush-hush, eh?" He asks, waving a fork at Arnav.

"I didn't want you to find it the wrong way Nathan," Arnav supplies. Noting his friend's confusion, he adds, "There are many employees who would recognize Khushi and have known her for a long time. Some may not be with us but it's only a matter of time before we start getting questions. What happened with her father wasn't resolved and there are many who still hold a vindictive agenda against her."

"Yet, you have risked a lot by hiring her." It was an accusation intoned as a mere observation that Nathan decided to put out there.

"Is it wrong?" Arnav asks. Khushi wonders if this is how a conversation between two nurturing parents would go when their teenage daughter talks about going on a date with the high school bad boy. She blames the wine for crappy analogies and bad similes.

Nathan chews his food thoughtfully for several moments before he replies. "No, it isn't."

She refrains from making a sarcastic comment. But her mouth is too late in catching up with her brain. "Maybe you two should start taking tough decisions like any other parents out there: in bedroom when children are asleep. Maybe then you won't sound like condescending assholes." She throws her napkin on her plate and gives them a wan smile. "Excuse me. I have to go to little girls' room and pretend I wasn't insulted on my face."

She doesn't dally around the table to watch the reaction from men as she storms to the ladies room. She isn't insulted by Nathan's disbelief in her accepting this job offer nor is she insulted by Arnav's mistrust in her. But that doesn't mean it hurts any less.

And to think, two decades ago her and Arnav were inseparable childhood friends.

Somewhere expected they know each other..i think when they will converse face to face,that'll clarify more of the situation.

that was a first. Really did not expect the small twist in the end. Update was short but crisp and to the point. Good one

Originally posted by: ntmrjn

Somewhere expected they know each other..i think when they will converse face to face,that'll clarify more of the situation.

They do know each other and have been running around same circles to let go of that knowledge. It's something that's always there and the impact would be interesting to see.

Originally posted by: Sindhuramakrish

that was a first. Really did not expect the small twist in the end. Update was short but crisp and to the point. Good one

Thanks. It was a calculated twist :-) Hope it doesn't fail.

Originally posted by: famiya

nice update

Thank you.

Originally posted by: shona231289

very nice start... :)

Thank you (: